What Have I Gotten Myself Into?
by Novembertopaz
Summary: Drinking, twister, poker. It was a great party. Everything was going fine until Sasuke got too cocky and made a bet with Naruto that he's now a little afraid to keep. What will happen next? And what has he gotten himself into? -Editing-
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.**

**This is purely for shits and giggles. Just popped into my head the other night. **

**Chapter One.**

Why was Sasuke in only his boxers with Naruto's bare back pressed against his chest, Hinata's surprisingly large lace clad breasts on his arm, Ino's barely concealed butt in his face, his arm under Shikamaru's leg and Kiba's face disturbingly close to Sasuke's own ass while Sakura and Neji were openly laughing at them from the corner of the room and Lee was setting out another round of shots? Because they'd all decided it'd be fun to play strip twister. With alcohol as an added penalty for losing. Right. Because that was _fun._ Sasuke sighed as he wondered why he always got himself into those things. Especially when he knew he'd lose. Right now it stood at him with four losses, having already taken off his socks, shirt, undershirt and pants. He only had to lose one more time for this to get really embarrassing and he was determined not to. Which was easier said than done. The first two times he'd fallen had been because he was uncomfortable with the close proximity of the others. The last two had been because sadly he was a light weight and the tequila shots had kicked in. He was fuzzy at the moment, but he was determined not to lose. Then again, so was pretty much everyone else. Naruto was down to his pants and boxers, Hinata was in her bra and panties, Ino was a little worse off with only her panties on and they didn't cover well at all, and Kiba was down to his undershirt and boxers. Shikamaru, the stupid, cheating jerk, had only lost his over shirt. Sasuke found he was really surprised at how many people wore undershirts like he did. Naruto didn't though. Why was he thinking about Naruto right now? He shook his head to clear it.

"Right hand..." Sakura called.

"Red," Neji finished, thoroughly enjoying the spectacle. The spinners had taken shots with every turn too and he'd really loosened up. Why did it take two people to spin and call out the new torture? Because Neji was above such childish behavior as stripping. Yeah right. A few more shots and he'd be tempted at the very least. Especially since Ten-Ten had already had way too much to drink when they weren't looking and was passed out in the opposite corner. If she wasn't awake to tease him about it and Lee was too nice to, then he wouldn't be so worried about it. The one thing holding him back right now was Hinata's state of undress. She was his cousin after all. Lee was in charge of the alcohol and was making them laugh - which was bad at the moment - because he wanted a drink and couldn't have one and he kept making up wild scenarios for why he would be able to. Everyone was glad that he showed restraint, and more than a little surprised that he offered to monitor it when he couldn't have any himself, because of his drunken fist skills. And they didn't want to completely kill Sasuke's compound, just have a good time. The new color arrangement had all of them cursing loudly, and much to everyone's pleasure Kiba and Ino dropped, Hinata letting out a surprised squeak when Kiba's flailing hand accidentally touched her ass.

"I'm so sorry Hinata!" he quickly apologized.

"It's okay Kiba," Hinata slurred as she readjusted her footing. "You know, it would have been really weird if Shino had been able to come. Kinda sucks that his parents don't let him come to parties though." Everyone was surprised that she wasn't talking in a soft voice except for Kiba who laughed at her statement. He must have been used to Hinata's other side by now.

"You know who I wish we'd invited?" Naruto asked of the room at large.

"Who?" Sasuke asked curiously.

"Kakashi. It would have been weird, but we could have gotten him to take his face mask off." Everyone briefly paused to try to imagine what might be under there.

Sakura sighed. "It would have been nice to see what he's hiding." Everyone looked at her funny. "Under that mask!" she corrected, waving her hands to try and dispell the awkwardness. Everyone laughed and then Sasuke groaned. He was going to fall soon. Dammit. "Left foot..." Sakura started.

"Blue," Neji finished with a sadistic grin. The four of them groaned. Why? Sasuke stretched as far as he could. The only blue available at the moment was the second set; they'd had to buy a larger mat so that everyone could play and it had two sets of the colors. The dam blue was killing him. He had his right foot on the first set of yellow, his right hand on the first set of red, and his left hand on the first set of blue. He was pretty much doing the splits and his arms weren't even able to support him properly. He groaned at the strain. Ino fell. Naruto cursed. Shikamaru cheated; there was no way he had this much luck, so he just had to be cheating. Sasuke tried not to whimper at the position he was in. He felt Naruto's butt rub against his groin area and decided that if he went down then so would Naruto. That thought made him feel a little better. The position disturbed him a little.

"Right foot..."

"Red." Neji sounded a little disappointed. Sasuke sighed in relief and moved his foot to red. However the combination messed Shikamaru up, who looked shocked by his mistake, and he ended up on the ground. He went to join the others who were waiting for another shot. Lee wouldn't let them have one until they'd determined a winner. Sasuke felt triumphant. He wouldn't lose.

"Left hand..."

"Purple!" Neji shouted. Purple? "Just kidding. It's green." But it was too late. Sasuke had fallen for it in his intoxicated state and looked frantically for the purple he couldn't remember seeing which caused him to wobble. Naruto was straining beneath him from doing such an obtuse form of the bridge. He wasn't quite sure who fell first, but they both came crashing down with a groan. Sasuke fell pretty much on top of Naruto and looked him in face, red with embarrassment. Oh no. He'd lost. That meant...

Everyone was roaring with laughter as Lee announced, "You both lose. Shots for everyone." Sasuke got up slowly, dragging his feet to get his shot because afterwards... He downed the tequila in a quick gulp and then before he could lose his courage he stripped off his boxers. He got a few appreciative noises from Sakura and Ino, Ino was also naked now, and he blushed furiously. At least now the touching was over. He just had to stand like this until they declaired an ultimate winner. He prayed that it was Shikamaru, because otherwise he'd have to wait like this way too long.

Surprisingly it was Naruto who won and Sasuke grew less and less self-conscious with every match. First Hinata and Kiba went out next, Neji was pointedly avoiding looking at his cousin, and then it was an intense battle between the last two. Shikamaru had gone down before Naruto in the match that Hinata and Kiba had lost in and he was now down to his pants and boxers, while Naruto was just in his boxers. Naruto won out over him in a one on one game using only the first set off colors which had them both down to their boxers. Then they went head to head again and again Shikamaru fell first. Naruto was the only one who got to retain his dignity. This was the part Sasuke hated... After Shikamaru shamelessly slipped off his last piece of clothing with a muttered 'I can't believe I lost' they all had to go outside and walk around the building five times. Sasuke really hoped it wasn't cold outside. Naruto, who earned the right to get dressed again, came outside with Sakura, Lee and Neji to watch the march. They were busting up laughing at them by the time they were finished walking because it was indeed cold outside and there was no covering allowed. Which meant that while Ino and Hinata looked more attractive the guys... Yeah.

"Can we go inside now?" Ino asked through chattering teeth. The four blocking the door laughed again, but eventually they let them in. Everyone put their clothes back on.

"Hey Sasuke, want to play poker?" Naruto asked good-naturedly.

"Do we have to strip in that too?" Sasuke asked sarcastically.

"Nah." Naruto said with a wave of his hand.

"What do we bet with then?" Sasuke asked, deciding to play.

"We can't bet with money because I do have to eat this month. We could trade favors I guess."

"Okay." Sasuke sat down with him in a little corner, not bothering to look at what the others were doing and Naruto started to deal the cards. "Wait. Shouldn't we tell each other what the favor is beforehand?"

"We can if you want," Naruto said with a shrug. "You go first."

"Um. If I win, you have to help me clean up after the party and either buy or make me dinner for one month exactly. No more, no less. Deal?"

"Sure," Naruto said, looking grumpy about the dinner part. "But for a price that large I get to pick something big too." He was silent a moment and Sasuke became nervous as Naruto thought about it. "You have to stay at my place and do everything I tell you to for a month if I win. In other words, you have to be my slave." He grinned. Sasuke almost backed down, but he was an Uchiha - and drunk, but he conveniently forgot that part - and he had luck on his side.

"Deal." They shook on it and he picked up his cards. Straight flush, ten high. He made sure to keep the grin off of his face. He didn't even have to do any work for it. He looked up at Naruto. "Show them." Dinner, here I come. He almost passed out when he saw that Naruto had a royal flush.

"I always get some kind of flush. It really is weird," Naruto said, frowning. Sasuke wasn't too concerned with Naruto's problems right now, he had his own to deal with. He had to stay at Naruto's crappy appartment and be his slave for a whole month? Maybe there was a way out of this.

"So, um, best two out of three? Winner takes all?" He hoped desperately that Naruto would pick one of those so that he had a chance.

Naruto just grinned instead. "No way. I like my prize."

Sasuke gulped. Damn. He wouldn't go back on a deal he made, but he really wanted to know what all it entailed. He hadn't really been thinking about it when he'd assumed he'd win. "So, uh, what are the rules?"

"Anything I say goes. And I mean anything. As long as you do it willingly, I don't mind giving you time to yourself when I don't need something. You're going to have to pack up tomorrow morning though because you won't be seeing this place for a whole month unless you happen to need something later on. And remember, you already agreed and the terms are non-negotiable."

Anything? "What do you mean by anything?" Sasuke asked hoarsely. If Naruto was gay he'd be really worried.

"Starting tomorrow, if I say something, no matter how out there it seems, you have to do it. No complaints."

Sasuke gulped. "What if I'm not comfortable doing something?"

"I'll make a deal with you there too. You can choose to turn down a request of mine at any time, but it will add a day onto your sentence each time. That way I'm not forcing you to do anything you don't want to do, but I'm not getting jipped. Okay?"

Sasuke thought it over. The terms were fair, and like Naruto had said he'd already agreed to it. Surely there was no way Naruto would ask Sasuke to do something too far outside of his comfort zone. He nodded. "Deal. Starting tomorrow." Naruto nodded again, looking very smug. The smile he gave him made him shiver. "What have I gotten myself into?" he muttered under his breath.


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.**

**I'm just making this up as I go along guys, so bear with me. **

**Chapter Two.**

"Naruto," Sasuke whined. "Please don't make me do this! This is just cruel!"

"Do you want to forfeit a day then?"

"No," Sasuke groaned. This was horrible.

"Oh, come on Sasuke, it's not all that bad. Naruto's done it before," Hinata coaxed.

Sasuke gritted his teeth and left the safety of the room, Hinata following him out. He stood before Naruto trying not to let the heat reach his face. He was wearing a very lacy, black and white maid's dress that was just a little too short for comfort. Hinata had done his make-up which consisted of mascara, eye shadow, blush and lipstick, not to mention nail polish. He was carrying a pink feather duster, to make things worse, and he just about died of shame when he lost his balance and nearly toppled over due to the high heels he was wearing. His hair, which Hinata had straitened, swung into his face and poked him in the eye. He muttered a curse. Hinata tried and failed to hold back a giggle. Naruto laughed and took a few pictures. Sasuke groaned. "If Naruto had to do this then I want to see his pictures."

Naruto pointed to a mantle that Sasuke hadn't previously noticed. There were pictures of all the guys dressed in the same dress, and pictures of the girls in tuxedo's with no make-up on and their hair slicked back. "We've been trying to get you for a while now, but you just wouldn't make a bet with any of us," Naruto said happily as he continued to snap pictures. Sasuke went to study the pictures and chuckled at the pronounced strut in Naruto's snapshot.

"Can I take this off now?" he asked hopefully, already knowing the answer.

"Oh no. You haven't even done the best part yet!" Naruto exclaimed.

Sasuke sighed. "Is there anything I can get you... Master?" He winced at the last part. Hinata was crying and holding her stomach because she couldn't get a handle on her giggles.

"Actually I wouldn't mind a BLT." Sasuke rolled his eyes and then turned slowly and walked very carefully to the kitchen. The only problem was that you had to step down into it. He attempted the feat two or three times while clinging desperately to the walls. After those torturous and very dangerous attempts he decided it would be safest to scoot. He sat down on his butt, falling the last foot to the ground when he lost his balance again, and put his feet flat on the floor in the kitchen. It was then that he realized he was stuck as he tried futilely to get up. He huffed as he repositioned himself so that he could walk on his knees and then made his way over to the counter and heaved himself up. He ignored Naruto's guffawing and Hinata's odd mixture of laughing and sobbing while he started cooking the bacon. He would make them pay as soon as his month was up.

As soon as Hinata calmed down enough to stand she made her exit, popping her head into the kitchen for just a second to say, "Next time try going sideways. It's easier." She giggled again, a little hysterically, and then left. Naruto came in to watch just as Sasuke was putting everything on the toasted bread. He handed him his sandwich and crossed his arms, probably looking like an idiot in this pose since he was wearing stilettos.

"So? Can I take it off now?" He just glared at Naruto while waiting for a response. The stupid dobe was taking his time chewing.

"Yeah, yeah. Go ahead. I have everything I need." Sasuke was pleased. He didn't even attempt the step up, just took off the damn things that were hurting and pinching his feet and carried them back to the bedroom. The dress went next and then he was back in his clothes, comfortable and relaxed once more. He went to the bathroom to try to get the make-up off and stormed out with a frustrated yell almost fifteen minutes later. "I look like a fucking raccoon!" He shouted, his voice sounding accusing. Naruto, who had been relaxing on the couch, glanced at him and cracked up. He got up, still laughing the stupid baka, and headed towards the closet in the hall. He pulled out some lotion and squirted some on the wash cloth that Sasuke had been using. Still snickering he came over to Sasuke and instructed him to close his eyes. He rubbed for a few minutes with the cold substance and then stepped away. "There. The rest will come off in the shower."

Sasuke looked in the mirror and noticed that the smudges were indeed faded. "I still look like I have bags," he muttered.

"Your lips are still red. Lotion will get that off too," Naruto stated, but his voice had gone quiet. Sasuke looked at him inquisitively. "Kiss me Sasuke." He said it softly, but Sasuke recognized it as the command it was. He was stunned and unsure what to do. Slowly, jerkily, he leaned in and pecked Naruto on the cheek. Naruto raised an eyebrow at him in a 'really?' expression. He gulped. He really meant it. Was another day really that bad? Sasuke licked his lips nervously. He told himself that it was and that was the only reason he was even considering it. Taking a deep breath he leaned in and pressed his lips gently to Naruto's. "Kiss me Sasuke," Naruto growled against his mouth. So he closed his eyes, deciding to pretend he was kissing a girl, and pressed Naruto into the counter as he slipped his tongue into the other's mouth. Except he realized, albeit too late, that he couldn't pretend. He was stuck in the moment as he never had been before. This was real. And this was definitely Naruto who was moaning deep in his throat as he took control of the kiss and devoured Sasuke's mouth. And that was definitely Sasuke who was undilating his hips ever so slightly. It was that realization that snapped him out of it. He pulled back, gasping for breath, and just stared at Naruto who was doing the same. They weren't touching anymore, but they were close enough that Sasuke could still feel the blond's heat. He shivered.

"Anything else?" He asked hoarsely. He felt a little light headed.

"No. I, uh, need a shower. You might as well make yourself dinner and chill in the living room. Or go to bed. Either way I'll need you to excuse me." Sasuke realized Naruto's voice was strained and wondered why he was so eager to get in the shower all of a sudden until he saw the bulge in his pants and felt himself flush. Oh. Sasuke nodded quickly and backed out of the bathroom, shutting the door behind him. He made his way to the couch that was to be his bed for the duration, he wasn't hungry right now, and he laid down in a daze. What had just happened? Had he really just kissed his best friend? He knew the blond boy probably had plenty of friends he considered close, but Sasuke didn't usually get close to people and definitely considered him his best friend. He remembered the way that Naruto's rear had been pressed intimately against him during the game last night, thought about the kiss again, and realized with a startled gasp that he was getting hard. No. This couldn't be happening. He wasn't even gay and it was _his best friend!_ He couldn't think like this. But then, why had Naruto asked him to kiss him in the first place? It had definitely turned the other boy on so much that he needed a shower. Was Naruto gay? He felt it safe to assume that he was, even though he never would have guessed without this 'in your face' hint he'd given him. Oh shit. He was staying in his house, doing whatever he asked of him whenever he asked it unless he wanted to have to stay longer, and to make things worse Naruto was gay. And the maid's dress. Oh God. He decided to count himself lucky that he hadn't asked him to do that while he was dressed up. That flimsy piece of material would have provided no protection at all from roaming hands. The thought of Naruto massaging his tongue, grinding their hips together and trailing his hands down to grip his butt made Sasuke even harder. No. He couldn't do this. This wasn't fair to either of them. He had no intention of screwing up their friendship this way and he definitely had no notion of taking things farther than the promised month. He groaned, something that seemed to be becoming a habit lately, and threw his arm over his face. Willing himself to forget everything for the moment he fell asleep.

When he woke the next day he showered and changed his clothes before going out to train. He skipped breakfast, a little worried about running into Naruto before he could come to terms with things. He started going through his morning routine: pushups, situps, crunches, jumping jacks and crazy eights. Crazy eights were his favorite; scoot your feet out eight times, walk on your hands away from your feet eight times, do eight pushups, return to original position, repeat. It was during one of these that Shikamaru approached him and grinned. "Hey Shika. What's up?" he asked curiously.

Shikamaru grinned. "I heard about the bet. A whole month, huh?"

"Yeah," Sasuke sighed, brushing his hair away from his forehead. Shikamaru's eyes bulged.

"Oh my gosh. He actually got you to do it!" he shouted excitedly.

Sasuke raised an eyebrow for a moment and then turned red as a tomato when he made the connection. "How do you know?" he asked incredulously.

"You, uh, forgot the nail polish," Shikamaru said in a shaky voice. His mouth was trembling and Sasuke knew he wanted to laugh. Sasuke felt even more stupid now as he realized he did in fact still have blood red nail polish on. Damn. "Well, I, um, have to do something," Shikamaru murmured before rushing off and calling out to Ino who wasn't too far away from where they'd been standing. Great. He was probably gathering the group so the they could go look at the pictures. Come to think of it, he hadn't even seen them yet. He'd have to look later when he had calmed down about everything, including the kiss. He sat down with a sigh and took out a kunai then proceeded to scrape the polish off his nails until they were once again bare. This month was going to be hell. It wasn't until Kakashi stopped by later that he decided to man up and go back to the appartment.

"So, Sasuke. I hear you've been having quite a bit of fun," Kakashi said, appearing out of nowhere and leaning casually against a tree.

"Shut up," Sasuke grumbled. He crossed his arms and sat down, not bothering to hide the fact that he was pouting.

"I've gotta say... I love the feather duster. It really adds the finishing touch." Sasuke glanced up in shock. How did Kakashi know about that? "Don't worry. I have Naruto's too. He's not in the least bit shy."

Sasuke refused to look at him when he said, "Can I see it? He didn't show it to me after he took it." Kakashi walked over and handed it to him. He had to admit, he almost looked like his mother when she was younger. He sighed. Thinking he'd make a pretty girl did not make him feel better. He handed the picture back to Kakashi and stared petulantly at the ground. "I'm never going to live this down, am I?"

"You don't really have to live it down. You're the last of the group to do it. You shouldn't be so embarrassed. It's just playing around. It's not like you're secretly a cross dresser, right? So you have nothing to worry about."

"Even if I could get over how strange wearing a dress feels, I will never get used to heels. So no, I have never been nor will I ever be a cross dresser."

"Then relax and learn to live a little kid." And with a smile and a 'poof' he was gone. Sasuke sighed, packed up his stuff, and slowly made his way back to Naruto to confront him about yesterday. When he went inside he searched for Naruto and found him in his bedroom. He was laying on the bed, staring at the ceiling.

"Naruto," he said softly. Naruto didn't look at him, but he did pat the bed, indicating that Sasuke should sit. He did, hesitantly, and started to talk quietly. "Naruto, you're my best friend. I don't want anything to come between us. I like you, but not like that. I'm sorry. I don't want this to ruin our friendship." He looked down at the bed. He didn't want to see the expression on Naruto's face.

"Sasuke," Naruto said calmly. "You're here for the month right?" Sasuke nodded. "And you promised to do whatever I say the entire time?" Warily, Sasuke nodded again. "Then I want you to pretend. Just for this month, pretend that we're more than just friends. Keep an open mind and try new things with me. I'm only asking for the time you've already promised. After that, it will go back to the way it was. That's _my_ promise." Sasuke bit his lip. Could he really do something like that? He looked at Naruto, saw his shuttered expression and glazed eyes. Yes. He could at least try.

"Okay," he whispered. "I'll try."

"Then kiss me," Naruto said softly. And for the second time in less than twenty-four hours, he leaned forward and pressed his lips to Naruto's. But this time, he didn't pull away. He just let Naruto take control and waited for the other boy to be satisfied. His lips were chapped by the time they'd finished and he once again went to bed in a daze.


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.**

**MA just to be safe. No lemons or anything. **

**Chapter Three.**

Sasuke slowly worked his way out of the depths of sleep, happily responding to the pressure on his lips and allowing access to the tongue that darted out. He moaned into the kiss, half-consciously pulling the kisser closer. He heard the person above him make a noise in their throat and felt his morning wood twitch in response. Someone's very soft hands were roaming over his bare chest, gentle fingers feathering over his sensitive nipples. When the person broke away and he felt a warm mouth enclose one of the erect nubs he arched his back with a whimper. He wanted this. He felt the kisser playing with his boxers, the only thing he slept in, and he wanted nothing more than for this person to remove the offending piece of cloth and allow him to lose himself in them. It was as he came to this thought that he started wondering who exactly was paying such glorious attention to him so early in the morning when he remembered where he was and his eyes snapped open wide. Blond hair greeted him as a pair of teeth nipped at his collar bone. He was still hard, still unbelievably horny, but now he was also confused. He couldn't have sex with Naruto. Why was the boy teasing him like this?

"Good morning Sunshine," Naruto said with a forced smile as he put distance between them. He got up off of the couch and headed for the kitchen.

"Naruto. What were you doing?" Sasuke asked in a strained voice. The loss of the boy's ministrations was almost agonizing and he wanted nothing more than to pin him to the wall. Which was just weird considering it was his best friend.

"I just thought I'd wake you up in a way that would be fun for the both of us." The blond shrugged, pointedly not looking at him.

"Well, as much fun as it might have been in the beginning, my little friend isn't having too much fun right now." Sasuke was frustrated because he was starting to feel the effects of blue balls. Now what was he supposed to do?

"I could fix that if you'd like," Naruto murmured and Sasuke's heart skipped a beat. He sat there frozen, trying to breathe. What had Naruto just said? Had he really offered to...?

"What are you saying Naruto? You can't really want to do things like that with me when you know it's going to end?" He couldn't keep the disbelief from his voice. Naruto looked at the floor, but not before Sasuke saw him blush.

"You agreed to pretend. Just figured it was worth a try. Sorry." He finally went into the kitchen and Sasuke sat on the couch, trying to figure out what to do. He had agreed to pretend, but he hadn't thought that Naruto would take it that far. He didn't want that, probably never would, but seeing the dejected expression on his friend's face made him feel guilty. He got up and went into the kitchen. Slowly, hesitantly, he pulled Naruto's back against his chest and secured his arms around his waist. After debating for a minute he kissed his shoulder lightly.

"I'm sorry. Will you come watch a movie with me? I promise I'll hold you through the whole thing." He felt the boy stiffen in his arms before turning his head to look him in the eye. He was clearly bewildered.

"I don't understand. Why did you change your mind?"

"I did agree to try. I don't want to get too serious with you because I don't want things to be awkward for us after all of this is over, but that doesn't mean I don't want to be close to you. Please?" Naruto turned in his arms, his gaze skeptical. So Sasuke did the only thing he knew would convince him. He kissed him without being asked to. Naruto sighed against his lips and then pulled away.

"Alright. Go pick one up while I finish making us ramen." Sasuke groaned at Naruto's choice of food, but he did as he was told. The movie he picked was a comedy which he hoped would lighten the mood. Naruto brought the food in and they ate quickly, then Sasuke took the bowl from Naruto and set both of theirs on the floor before getting comfortable and pulling the blond between his legs and urging him to relax against his chest. The movie did exactly what Sasuke wanted it to and Naruto was still chuckling by the time it was over. Without thinking, Sasuke grabbed Naruto's chin and crushed their lips together. Every chuckle, every little squirm of happiness had added to the fire that was slowly building up inisde of him from being so close to the other boy's warm body. He knew Naruto was momentarily startled, but he recovered quickly and turned to dominate Sasuke. When they finally pulled apart to catch their breath Sasuke had slid down so that he was completely laid out and Naruto was straddling him. "I was just beginning to convince myself that I needed to stop doing this because it bothers you," Naruto muttered ruefully.

"I'm sorry. You're just, well, too damn appealing. I never noticed it before, but having you pressed up against me like that... It changes things."

Naruto was looking at him like he was scared of what he would say next. "So... What do we do now?" he asked nervously.

"Is going on a date an option?" Sasuke asked mildly.

"No." The blond shook his head vigorously. "Like you said, this all ends the moment our deal is over. I don't want to get too into it."

Sasuke felt a pang. This was not a good idea. He was going to hurt Naruto no matter what he did. This sucked. "But sex isn't personal?"

Naruto flushed slightly. "Sex is just sex as long as you know that's what it is going in. It's only if you let your feelings become part of it that it makes things go bad. I know it would just be sex." Sasuke tried not to think too much about why Naruto sounded like he was pleading.

"I'll think about it," Sasuke said, surprised that he hadn't immediately said no. Sex with his best friend? So not a good idea. "Are there any ground rules you'd like to lay down?" he asked casually.

"Well, I think the only way it will work is if I'm the seme. Virgins of the uke sort tend to get at least a little attached to their first, right? So we can eliminate that possiblity if you agree to be the uke." He wasn't looking Sasuke in the eyes.

"Okay. _If_ I decide to go along with this I'll agree to be the uke. I am your slave after all," Sasuke reminded, only half teasing about that fact. He was quiet a moment. "Are you really a virgin? I thought you must have found someone by now. I was pretty sure about Hinata and you actually."

"Nah. We're just friends. I've known I was gay since I was eleven. Not many people know though and I've never met a guy I was attracted to enough to get that intimate. Also, I only just turned sixteen. There's no reason to rush it."

"Then why are you interested in being with me that way?" Sasuke asked curiously.

"Well, I've had kind of a small crush on you for a few months now. You're definitely attractive on both a physical and intellectual level. After I broke down and asked you to kiss me, I've been fantasizing about it pretty much every waking second."

Sasuke was stunned by the admission. He realized that there was suddenly something very unyeilding against his thigh. He blushed when he came to the conclusion that Naruto was excited after admitting to his fantasies. "Just give me a few days to wrap my mind around the idea and then I'll give you a firm answer, okay?" It was the best he could offer at the moment.

"Okay." The blond laid his cheek over Sasuke's heartbeat and sighed. After a few minutes Sasuke noticed that he was running his fingers lightly up and down Naruto's back and asked him if it was bothering him. He got no answer. He stretched to look at Naruto's face and found the boy sleeping soundly. And he still had a boner. This guy really was something else. They slept like that, Sasuke being in a terrible position for lifting someone. The next few days were filled with nonstop obsessing about what choice he would make. Sure, he'd had a few sexual encounters, mostly with this girl Karin that he'd met outside of the village, but never one with a guy and never with someone he considered a friend. It was a tough choice. He decided that tomorrow he would talk to the only other gay person he knew: Neji.

"What brings you to my corner Sasuke?" Neji asked as Sasuke approached the Hyuga's normal training ground.

"I need to talk to you about something personal." He could tell the other boy was curious as he sat down on the grass in front of him. "Okay. So, say someone made a bet to be someone else's slave for a month. This person is supposed to do whatever they're asked to do or else add an extra day to their sentence every time they chicken out of something. And then say the 'master', for lack of a better word, asks for a kiss and the 'slave' decides that a kiss isn't worth adding on a day so he does it. Then things get awkward and the 'slave' tries to talk to his 'master' about why they're uncomfortable with the situation only to be offered another deal. Pretend until the month is up and then everything will go back to normal and they'll forget about all of it. So say the 'slave' agrees to try to pretend and ends up kissing the 'master' again for quite some time. And then the 'slave' wakes up to the 'master' attempting to pleasure him awake and the situation gets awkward again. So the 'slave' feels bad for hurting the 'master's' feelings after he promised to try and offers to hold the 'master' while watching a movie to make up for it. But then after the movie the 'slave' does something stupid and kisses the 'master' which dredges up more discomfort. Then the 'master' belts out quite a speech and they agree on ground rules before the 'slave' agrees to think about the offer and get back to him. Now add in that they're of the same gender and one has known they swing that way for five years, but the other is only just starting to think about the possibility. In this situation, what should the 'slave' do?"

Neji blinked. "Wow. You know that would have been much shorter if you had just said that Naruto's gay and wants to get jiggy with you now that he has you in his clutches, but you're not sure how you feel about that even if it does end when the bet does." Sasuke gaped and flushed beet red. "Pretty much everyone knows about the bet Sasuke. Don't look so shocked. So. You're worried because you're starting to like the idea but you don't know if you're gay?" Sasuke nodded numbly. "Well, if you like it, and Naruto has promised that things will go back to normal afterward, what would it hurt to go along with it?"

"What if he wants me to be uke?" Sasuke asked embarrassedly.

"Well, he's putting more into this than you would be. It seems fair. He's a virgin and you're not, right?"

"How'd you know?" Neji just gave him a pointed look. "Okay. So it's ture. But just because I'm not a virgin doesn't mean I'm not new to _this_."

"That is true, but you're less likely to form an emotional attachment than he is. I say it's fair. Besides, you're doing this as much for him as you are yourself, right? It kind of goes without saying that he gets to pick the specifics in that dynamic. Just let yourself enjoy it until the month is up and then go back to being a completely straight Uchiha. Okay? Stop stressing."

Sasuke sighed but realized that Neji was just telling him what he already knew. "Yeah. Okay. I guess I will. No harm in giving in for one month out of my life." Neji grinned at him.


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.**

**There will be some action. I don't really know where you cross the line from Lime to Lemon, but be prepared. Rated MA just to be safe. **

**Chapter Four.**

"You're EVIL!" Sasuke complained as he tried not to think about how much his arms hurt. Naruto had given him a tooth brush and told him to scrub the kitchen floor. It was so bad down here he wondered if the stupid blond ever cleaned it. He'd been scrubbing for over an hour now and he wasn't even halfway done. And this was all because he walked in barefoot and found the floor was sticky, which he turned around and complained about. He knew Naruto was trying to tell him not to complain about his house, but he didn't care. He wasn't going to just live here for a month if it was filthy. Hell, it might even be hazardous. He didn't much mind the cleaning, he was a clean freak after all, but he did mind doing it with a tooth brush. He'd been alternating hands the whole time so now both arms hurt equally. "Just see if you get any play time tonight!" he shouted angrily. He heard Naruto chuckle from the living room. That was it. It was so on.

That night, long after Naruto had gone to sleep, Sasuke got the whipped cream. He let it sit on the counter for a little while so it wouldn't be so cold that it would wake the other boy up, and then he entered Naruto's room stealthily. The boy was sprawled out on his back, arms flung out to the sides, legs tangled in the blankets. He looked kind of cute like that. Sasuke shook his head. He could think about stuff like that after he was done. He sprayed a very generous amount of the creamy substance on the boys right hand and then proceeded to tickle his nose with a feather. The blond did exactly what he wanted and slapped himself in the face, coating himself with the sweet cream. Sasuke laughed and made to back away, but Naruto grabbed his wrist and pulled him down on top of him. "Now you have to lick it off." Sasuke's lips were possessed very thoroughly for some time after that. Naruto eventually got up to clean his face.

"You're going to pay for that," Naruto warned. Sasuke tried to scramble up off of the bed, but Naruto was straddling him before he even managed to do more than wiggle a little bit.

"What are you going to do to me?" It was both a question and a challenge. Naruto didn't answer. Instead his pulled Sasuke shirt off quickly, leaving the boy no chance to use his arms in defense. They were pinned above his head before he could blink. Naruto started kissing down his neck and nibbled on his collar bone. Sasuke sighed at the sensations. That felt good. His eyse opened wide as he let out a startled gasp when Naruto's mouth closed around a nipple. The blond nipped gently and suckled roughly, causing Sasuke to whimper. Oh God that felt good. Naruto moved even lower. Something clicked for the raven and he realized what the other boy intended to do. He started trying to break free with a new vigor.

"Stop moving," Naruto demanded and then let go of Sasuke's hands. So the raven had to make a decision. Let this happen or add a day? He'd promised he'd try. He clenched his fists in the sheets and waited breathlessly. Naruto slid his pants off of him and then without any hesitation took Sasuke into his mouth. The raven cried out as his erection twitched. His fingers tangled themselves in Naruto's hair and he arched his back, his hips raising up to seek more. Oh yes, this was what he wanted. It had been so long. He moaned and moved his hips gently back and forth. What Naruto was doing with his mouth was driving him wild, his tongue eliciting loud groans. He didn't know how much longer he could hold on.

"Naruto! I'm going to-!" He came in a blinding rush, emptying himself into Naruto's amazing mouth. He collapsed on the bed, too worn out to move. Naruto swallowed all of it and then crawled up next to him. He stripped his own clothes off while Sasuke watched and the raven wondered if he wanted the favor returned. Naruto laid down next to him. "Um, don't you...?"

"Just shut up and go to sleep," Naruto murmured, his tone betraying his happiness. Sasuke smiled slightly and cuddled up to the blond as inconspicuously as he could. He went to sleep very quickly.

He was naked. He was naked, and Naruto was naked, and they were both in Naruto's bed. What the hell? He tried to calm down and think, tried to remember what happened. When he finally did remember he felt all of his blood rush to his face. "Good morning Sunshine," Naruto said cheerily, leaning over to be face to face with Sasuke. Sasuke groaned and threw his arm over his eyes. It was too early for this. And he was too naked for this for that matter.

"I won't be able to look you in the eye for the next week," he grumbled.

Naruto laughed boisterously. "Oh come on, it was just a blow job. Besides, you liked it. Admit it."

"So? That doesn't change the fact that waking up like this is mortifying." Naruto's lips were on his. Sasuke moved his arm a little to peek at the boy. He had such a beautiful smile on his face as he pulled away. "What am I going to do with you?" Sasuke murmured.

"Whatever I ask you to until you go back home and forget about me," Naruto answered calmly.

Sasuke was shocked. "I'm not going to forget about you. We'll still be friends. You know that, right?"

"Yeah. Sorry. Just messed up the wording, that's all," Naruto said, but he wasn't meeting Sasuke's eyes. That bothered him. Was he planning on severing their friendship after this? He didn't like that idea one bit.

"Naruto. Why did you ask me to do any of this? I want you to be honest with me."

"Life's too short to let opportunities pass you by. I've wanted to do this for quite some time, but I've always been to afraid of getting hurt. I'm not afraid anymore. I saw an opening, I took it. And I know there is no way that I could ever regret it." Naruto looked him straight in the eye and Sasuke could tell that he was telling the truth. He didn't know what possessed him to do it, but he just couldn't resist pressing his lips against the blond's. Naruto clutched at his shoulders for a moment, but he drew back before things could get heated up again. "I'm going to go take a shower. Want to make breakfast?"

"Sure." Sasuke got up shortly after him and pulled his clothes back on. He made his way into the recently cleaned kitchen and made a scrumptious breakfast. He ate his and got dressed in new clothes. By the time Naruto had emerged from the bathroom he was ready to go. "Food's on the table. I'm going to go train for a while. Okay?" Naruto nodded and headed to the kitchen. Sasuke left to go clear his mind.

When Sasuke came back he was about to go into Naruto's room to ask him what he wanted for dinner when he heard voices. He stood there eavesdropping even though he didn't usually do things like that. "You know it's not real. He's only doing it because of this deal. You're going to regret it Naruto. Please think about it some more."

"I think about it every day Hinata. And I know it's not real. But I can pretend. It's all I want before... You know my situation. It's not like I'll be able to regret it for very long."

"Please don't talk about that. Even thinking about it makes me cry," Hinata sniffled. "Even with your situation, this isn't healthy for you. You are going to feel so much pain when this is over that you won't even know what hit you. Trust me. Listen to me, please. Don't do this anymore. If it's too tempting while he's around then let him out of the deal."

"I won't hurt that bad as long as I hold myself back," he disagreed.

"But you aren't holding back. You're doing exactly what you always do with everything, Naruto. You're putting everything you have into this. You're thinking about it, dreaming about it, obsessing over it, hurting over it, even doing it. You're already in way to deep, and it's only going to get worse if you don't stop now." She sounded desperate.

"You know how smokers have lung problems? Even cancer sometimes? And it's painful, especially the longer it goes on. But even then, even after all the pain it cuases, in the end, they want just one last cigarette. It comforts them despite the pain. That's how it is for me. I need this Hinata, no matter how much it might hurt."

"But it could kill you!" she shouted, her voice shrill. She was sobbing quietly by this point.

"So could a lot of other things. And even if it did kill me, I'd die happy. This is my decision Hinata. Not yours, and not anyone else's."

"What if I tell him? Do you think he'll still go along with it?" she demanded desperately.

"If you were to tell him, then not only would I lose the comfort he brings me, but the comfort you bring me as well. That really might kill me." Sasuke had no idea what they were talking about, but it was definitely scaring him.

"What about him? How do you think it will affect him after... it... happens? Huh? Do you really think that he'd be okay if you guys had been intimate beforehand?"

"Sasuke... doesn't love me Hinata. He'll survive. He might be a little sad, but he'll move on. He'll forget about me. It won't be this big devestation you're so worried will come to pass. Even if I had one wish, I wouldn't wish that Sasuke would love me, because you're right. That would be unfair to him. But he doesn't. He never has, and he never will. I've love him forever Hinata. What do you expect me to do? You want me to deny the one thing I want most in life when it matters the most?"

Hinata was crying loudly now. "No. No that's not what I want. I'm sorry Naruto. You're right. I guess I hoped that maybe one day he'd return your feelings. To hear you say that, without any hope, that hurts. I don't want you to have to deal with that pain. It's not like you to give up on something."

"I'm not an idiot, even if people think I am. I know a lost cause when I see one. And yeah, it hurts like hell, but it's worth it. The pain is definitely worth it. I've been living with it for years now, the pain of knowing he doesn't care, but being able to see him every day, it makes it bearable. This won't change that." His voice was filled with so much pain that Sasuke felt ill. The bed groaned and Sasuke imagined Naruto moving closer to wrap his arms around the girl. "Now, don't cry anymore. I'll be okay. At least, as long as I need to be," he murmured quietly. Sasuke didn't want to see either of them right now. He didn't know how to handle this. What was going to happen after this bet was over? They both talked like something terrible would happen. Was Naruto going away? Maybe Jiraiya was taking him to train again. Or maybe he was being banished for some reason. What would Sasuke do if his best friend left and never came back? He didn't think he could handle that. He left again, walking outside. It was dark out now, and he felt a few rain drops hit him. The sky was crying. The rain usually made him feel better, but this time it just escalated his panic. What was he going to do? He had no answer for that.


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.**

**Sorry it took so long guys. I've been really sick. Hope you enjoy.**

**Chapter Five.**

"Kakashi," Sasuke called quietly. The silver haired man was standing at the war memorial, unperturbed by the rain. The ninja turned to look at him questioningly and Sasuke noted that this was probably the most serious he'd ever seen him.

"Yes?" he asked quietly.

"What's wrong with Naruto? Is he leaving? Where is he going?" he demanded, desperate for the answers.

Kakashi looked stunned. "How do you know that something's going on?"

"I overheard him talking to Hinata," he murmured, his heart sinking. So it was true.

"Well, I don't know what to tell you. It's really not my place. He's, uh, not leaving the village. I can at least say that much." Sasuke was confused. Then what was happening? "Look. I'm not supposed to talk about it. I really should be getting home." And with a 'poof' he was gone. He decided to suck it up and go in search of Hinata. He found her near the Hyuga complex and she was still crying.

"Hinata! I need to talk to you," he called out as he jogged up to her. She took one look at him, started crying harder, and ran into the complex. Shit. What now? Maybe one of his other friends would know? What about Sakura? He went to find her and realized he had no idea where she would hang out. That was sad. He didn't even know his own teamates habits. He went to her house first and luckily she was there. She wasted no time in taking him into her room.

"What could be wrong with Naruto that would make Hinata cry and Kakashi clam up?" he asked, wasting no time.

She blinked in surprise. "Something's wrong with Naruto?" He did his best to recite the conversation he'd heard, throwing his pride aside so that he was able to get the enormity of their words across. She looked flabbergasted. "You've, uh, been intimate with Naruto?" she asked, blushing at the thought.

"I didn't exactly want anyone to know about it, but this is too important. Besides, he was right. The deal was that it would end as soon as my time was up."

"He's been in love with you?" she asked, and he could hear the growing disbelief. He could tell she thought this was a prank.

"Don't look at me! I heard it for the first time tonight. That's not what I want to talk about right now. Look. I asked Kakashi, and he said he couldn't tell me, but he could at least say that he wasn't leaving the village. So that really scares me."

"That is kind of scary," she whispered, suddenly looking worried. "I'll see if I can go talk to Hinata. Come on." She stood up and held her bedroom door for him. They walked all the way back to the Hyuga complex together, but he stayed outside. She came back out after half an hour looking discouraged.

"What? What is it?" he asked worriedly.

"She wouldn't say. But you're right. Everytime I asked about it she would just cry harder. I spent the last fifteen minutes consoling her. If she was that upset... I'm really worried that it's something bad." She looked at the ground, her face sad. "I'll see if he'll talk to me." They made their way slowly to his apartment. She went in while he waited just outside. When she came back out fifteen minutes later shaking her head he resigned himself to asking him personally. She left with a wave, looking dazed at the prospect that something bad was going to happen. He slowly made his way to the Hokage's office to voice his concerns.

"Look, it's not my place to say. My suggestion is that you come clean about eavesdropping and ask him yourself. But, you know he'd tell you if it was something important."

"He didn't tell me he's been in love with me," he countered.

"And for a good reason. You're afraid to even go back there now that you know." He was about to protest, but he realized he was right. She gave him a knowing look. "Maybe the reason he hasn't told you about this yet is because he knows you'd take it badly. You should learn to trust your friends Sasuke. Why don't you put this on the back burner for a while, and just wait and see if he tells you himself towards the end of the month. Okay?"

"Yeah," he said hoarsely. She was right, about all of it. Naruto did know him well and he was probably only witholding information for that very reason. He would trust the blond who'd easily become his best friend so many years ago. "Thanks Tsunade."

"Any time." She smiled at him. He walked aimlessly around, noticing that a small bird was heading in the direction of Naruto's place. He followed it and saw that it was a message for Naruto. He nodded to the bird and went inside, coming back out with a jacket on before making his way to Tsunade's office. Sasuke followed quietly. He couldn't help it. "I'm not going to say who, but someone overheard your conversation with Hinata earlier."

"I was wondering how Sakura knew. Was it her?"

"No. It wasn't. I imaging this other person decided to employ the help of one of your team members in the hopes that they would know. Look, I know that it's difficult, to think about and to talk about, but you really should at least tell your close friends. What about Sasuke? He's your best friend. Don't you think he'd want to know?"

"I know him better than anyone else does. I know he'd feel obligated to say and do things he doesn't mean in order to make me feel good before it comes to that. But that's not what I want. I want him to be exactly who he is. That makes spending time with him all the sweeter. When it comes down to it, I just don't want to be treated the way I know I would be if anyone knew. I mean, look how Hinata is handling it. She and Gaara, and maybe Neji if Gaara told him, are the only ones who know so far and Hinata can barely keep her smile on when she's around me. And the sad things is, most of the time it's not even a real smile!" He was quickly getting upset.

"What happens when you don't tell anyone and then one day you're just...?"

"I've written everyone letters. I intend to give them to Kakashi when it gets closer to that time so that he can disperse them when the time is right. I've... got one for you too." The tension in the other room was practically leaking out to where Sasuke was standing.

"That's... very sweet of you," Tsunade said and Sasuke realized with a jolt that she sounded as though she was holding back tears. "I wish... I wish you could have fulfilled your dream," she whispered.

"You and me both lady," he said. His voice sounded small and sad. Sasuke was really scared now. "I've got to get home. Sasuke might be home soon. I'm surprised he hasn't come back yet with all this rain, but he does love to train. Anyways, I don't want to miss him. Like I said. Any time with him I get is precious at this point. Then again, it always has been."

"I keep looking. I've never really given up hope, you know. I've been looking through every book, or note, that I can get my hands on. I even asked Chio from the sand. I'm not giving up. Not until..."

"Thank you Tsunade. I would tell you not to overdo it, but I know you wouldn't listen. So thank you." Sasuke quickly melted into the shadows as Naruto departed. When he was sure the blond was no longer in the building he went back to his listening place. Tsunade was sobbing quietly. There was no mistaking it. The sounds may have been muffled, but they were very distinct. He felt as though he was caught in a nightmare and he couldn't wake up. He remembered what Naruto had said about the time they spent together being precious and decided to stop being a baby. He made his way home as quickly as he could.

"I'm back," he called to the place at large.

"Hey Sasuke. I just got back too. Did you enjoy the rain?" he asked, walking into the living room with a smile.

"Yeah. I love rain." Sasuke smiled in return. _Most of the time it's not even a real smile!I_ Sasuke dropped the smile quickly, realizing he'd forced it. He wasn't going to do that. He wasn't going to behave the way Naruto had said he would. He was going to put this into a drawer in the back of his mind and not open it again until the time was right. He was just going to be Sasuke. "Want some dinner?" he asked as his stomach growled.

"Sure," Naruto said with a grin.

"Why don't you pick out a movie, or a game for us to entertain ourselves with once we're done."

"If I pick out a movie, we could watch it while we eat," Naruto pointed out.

"Okay. Your choice." He went into the kitchen and made a stirfry. He knew Naruto wasn't big on vegetables, but he needed to eat them sometimes, right? Besides. Why woul he have vegetables at all if he never ate them? _Because he knows you love them._ He didn't want to admit that the little voice in his head was right, but he knew that it probably was. That made him feel bad. "Hay Naruto," he said, raising his voice so that he could be heard in the next room. "Why don't we go to Ichiraku's for dinner tomorrow? My treat." There was silence for a moment.

"I appreciate the offer, but I've been finding that I'm getting sick of ramen lately." Sasuke nearly dropped the wooden spoon he was using to stir everything. Naruto, sick of ramen? That wasn't possible, was it? He made a conscious decision to talk to someone at the hospital tomorrow and find out what would cause someone to lose their appetite for their favorite foods, make sure he was okay. He finished the stirfry and served it up. Naruto took a bite out of it and moaned. "That's delicious Sasuke," he said happily as he scarfed down every bite. Sasuke decided that he probably was sick and he was definitely going to talk to a doctor, or nurse. They watched a sad movie that night, and Sasuke had a lot of trouble sleeping. He rolled around, fluffed his pillow, moved to the floor. Nothing worked. With a sigh he got up and grabbed his bedding, tucking it under his arm. He went into Naruto's room

"Hey, Naruto?" he murmured, wondering if he was still awake?

"Yes Sasuke?" Naruto mumbled, sounding sleepy.

"I... can't sleep. The movie made me sad. Do you mind... if I sleep in here with you?" he asked timidly.

Naruto rolled over and smiled gently at him. "I don't mind at all," he said, patting the bed. Sasuke gratefully laid down next to him. As he was falling asleep he felt Naruto sling his arm over his waist. Without even thinking about it, he moved further into that touch until they were spooning. He had very strange dreams that night.

"Can I help you?" one of the nurses he'd caught walking down the hall asked.

"Um, I was just wondering what would make someone lose their appetite for their favorite foods?"

The nurse looked at him sympathetically. "Well, a lot of things actually. I'd need more specifics. Would you like me to do a quick chek up?"

"Oh, no. It's not me. A friend of mine _loves_ ramen, and I offered to take them to Ichiraku's today, but they told me they just haven't been in the mood for it lately. And then they ate vegetables when they _hate_ vegetables. I was just a little worried that they might be sick."

"Oh. Hm. It really is hard to say. If it's an elderly person I'd be inclined to say that they're reaching the end of their days," she said softly, as though trying to decide whether or not it was his grandparents or something. "Most of the time when an elderly person loses their appetite for their favorite foods it's unusual and can be a sign that they're only going to be on this earth for a short period of time longer. It can also be a sign in a younger person, but it's very uncommon. Chances are their taste buds have changed. How old are they?"

"Sixteen," he murmured. Thank God it wasn't what she'd just said. He didn't think he'd be able to bear it if Naruto were to die. _I wish you could have fulfilled your dream._ Tsunade's words drifted back to him and for a moment he panicked. He told himself firmly that he really needed to quit eavesdropping.

"Hm. Well, I'm sure it's nothing to worry about. They might just be going through a growth spurt and their body needs more than what it's getting, so it's substituting his normal diet with healthier stuff," she offered.

"I bet you're right. Thanks," he said, feeling a little better as he walked away. He mused for a little while about what he would do if Naruto died. Naruto had said that he'd forget about him. He knew that was wrong. He'd never forget his best friend. He'd definitely mourne him, that much was obvious. Would he go into a depression? Would he never be able to accept another person into the position of 'best friend'? What would he do if they tried to assign someone new to the team? He realized he was making himself angry and decided to stop. It wasn't something he had to worry about right now anyway. The chances of Naruto dying were slim to none. He had amazing healing powers, had even healed after his heart had stopped beating at one point. It wasn't like he was going to die while they were on a mission, so he had nothing to worry about. At least, that's what he told himself.


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.**

**Rate MA for eighteen and older. **

**Chapter Six.**

Naruto's confession of love swirled around Sasuke's mind all week, clashing horribly with the curses he wanted to fling the blond's way at all the stuff he had to do as his 'slave'. Wash his dirty, nasty laundry. Seriously, that stuff stank! Dust the house with the stupid pink duster which worked to remind him of the humiliating picture that was now on the mantle with the others, as well as making him sneeze until he got a headache. There was dust everywhere! Honestly, he didn't think this place had ever been cleaned. Cleaning the bathroom - gag. He almost threw up when he had to clean behind the toilet, and he did puke in his mouth when he cleaned out the shower drain. Ew, ew, ew! He had to empty the vacuum twice when he vucuumed the house. What the hell did Naruto do with his life? Surprisingly it seemed like all he did was train. He had tons of entertainment in his house, but it was obvious he didn't use any of it unless it was a lazy day. Or unless he had Sasuke over... Sasuke shook that thought from his head. He finished the dishes, the least of his punishments as Naruto walked in, sweaty and breathing heavily. Sasuke's nose wrinkled as he imagined washing those clothes, but then he realized that Naruto seemed a little frustrated. He walked over to the blond and crossed his arms. "What crawled up your butt?" He barely managed not to blush as his mind jumped to sex. He seemed to be having a lot of trouble with his libido lately and he didn't want to admit that it was because Naruto hadn't touched him since Hinata had come over and he'd overheard that weird conversation a week ago. Not even a kiss. He mentally pouted at the thought.

"Nothing," Naruto muttered, starting to push past Sasuke. The raven didn't even really think about what he was doing, he just kissed him. Naruto looked surprised.

"Please tell me?" Sasuke asked, pouting a little.

Naruto sighed. "It really is nothing. It's just that I've been trying to do this move in my training and I can't. I used to be able to do it, so it makes me wonder if I'm not training enough." He ran his fingers through his hair, messing it up and drawing Sasuke's attention to the sweat once again.

"You're training plenty, trust me. As a matter of fact, you need a shower. Now."

"Do I stink that much?" Naruto asked, raising an eyebrow.

"No. But you're dirty and I know what your clothes smell like after you train, so it would make me feel better if you'd take one," Sasuke said with a shrug. Naruto nodded and went towards the bathroom, taking off his jacket to reveal the mesh shirt underneath that seemed to accentuate his torso. That came off too. Just as he was rounding the corner he dropped his pants and stepped out of them. Sasuke shivered at the sight of Naruto in his boxers. It had been so long since they'd done anything and that kiss had definitely not been enough. He followed him into the bathroom, stripping as he went. "Do you mind if I join you?" he asked quietly, standing there in all his naked glory, telling himself that he wasn't staring at Naruto's ass.

Naruto froze as he was stepping in. He looked at Sasuke searchingly. "I don't mind," he murmured softly. Sasuke got in right after him, jolting a little when his hand brushed against Naruto's thigh. Naruto was rinsing his hair and Sasuke got the strange urge to lick Naruto's exposed throat. He stopped himself from doing it, but when Naruto reached for the shampoo, Sasuke snatched it up and poured some into his own hand before rubbing it into the wonderfully soft blond locks. He barely held back a moan and desperately tried to keep himself from getting the erection he felt coming. Naruto let him wash his hair, moving easily with Sasuke's movements, and he let his eyes wander over the pale boy's body. Sasuke saw the heat in those rich blue orbs and he lost the battle. He definitely had a boner now. He didn't feel quite so bad when he saw that Naruto had one too, though. He finished lathering his hair and Naruto rinsed it, his movements looking very sensual to Sasuke. Something about this was extremely erotic. He grabbed the conditioner and repeated the process. By the time he got to the body wash his arousal was painful. Naruto looked into his eyes as Sasuke's hands glided over his chest and shoulders and Sasuke didn't break eye contact until he turned him around so that he could get his back. Without giving himself time to hesitate he scrubbed over Naruto's rear, giving the plump cheeks a squeeze. Naruto moaned and Sasuke's cock twitched. He bent and got the backs of his legs, once again trailing his fingers over the firm cheeks on his way back up. He washed each arm before turning him around again. Naruto's eyes were clearly searching for something and Sasuke didn't know what it was, but he allowed his desire to show in his own eyes and he saw something stir in the beautiful blue depths that he hadn't seen before. He bent down and washed the fronts of his legs, made him pick his feet up so that he could wash those. Then he got fresh soap and washed the part he'd been wanting to get to since he followed him into the bathroom. Naruto closed his eyes and clenched his fists as Sasuke slowly stroked him.

Naruto gently pushed him away, pulled him up so he was standing straight again. "My turn," he said as he pushed Sasuke under the water. Sasuke would have enjoyed doing what he'd been doing if he'd been given the chance, but since he'd been forced into the spray he soaked his hair quickly so that he could have some more fun. Having his hair wash made him want to pur. It was honestly one of the best feelings in the whole world. By the time Naruto got to his body Sasuke's muscles were practically humming in pleasure. He wouldn't be surprised if his cells were too. When Naruto wrapped his strong hand around Sasuke's throbbing erection he nearly came right then. The slow stroking was killing him. Naruto wrapped his hand around and played with his butt causing noises Sasuke didn't know he was capable of making to come out of his throat. Suddenly the water was off and Naruto was waiting for him with a towel. He dried him off slowly, provoking Sasuke until he could take it anymore. He pinned the blond against the wall and kissed him roughly. He slowly led him to the bedroom, never breaking the kiss, and allowed himself to fall back on the bed, dragging Naruto with him. They struggled against each other. "Why are you doing this?" Naruto ground out.

"Because I want you," Sasuke breathed and the blond seemed to snap. Before Sasuke knew what was happening Naruto had slid a finger inside of him. He clenched automatically and Naruto shook his head.

"Relax. You have to relax." Sasuke took deep breaths and focused on consciously relaxing his muscles. As soon as he'd accomplished the feat Naruto inserted another finger and started moving them in and out. Sasuke grunted and moaned, found himself moving with the shallow thrusts. Naruto stuck a third finger and Sasuke's head spun. He needed Naruto. Now. He hooked his hands under the boy's arms and pulled him up, growling when his fingers slipped out. He reached between them to position Naruto before he thrust onto his arousal. Naruto groaned and Sasuke attacked his mouth. The feeling of having something so large inside him was strange to say the least, but he found that he liked it quite a lot. Naruto was extremely thick and he had a feeling that he would enjoy that more than he would have if he'd just been long, though he was long too. Naruto started moving inside him and he thought his head my come off. That felt so _good_! He let a sound that he viciously denied was a whimper and moved to Naruto's rhythm. Naruto was going agonizingly slow and Sasuke tried everything to get him to speed up. He wanted more, needed more.

"Naruto!" he cried out, squirming against him. "Please!" Naruto plunged into him all the way to the hilt and Sasuke's butt came up off the bed when he hit something that made Sasuke cry out. The blond started to pick up the pace, thrusting in roughly and quickly. He reached between them to pump Sasuke's erection and the raven threw his head back on a silent scream as he came, hard. Naruto began thrusting into him wildly and before very long Sasuke felt the warm liquid filling him. The blond collapsed on top of him. Sasuke refused to acknowledge that he was clinging. He laid there trying to wrap his mind around what had just happened. He definitely wanted more than that. He started to panic a little when he realized that almost half of his time was up. What was he going to do after the bet was over? He didn't want to think about that right now. "Naruto?" he whispered, wondering why the blond had been so quiet lately. Naruto picked his head up and looked at Sasuke questioningly. Sasuke couldn't help it, he kissed him. The kiss wasn't so much passionate as it was tender. When he pulled away the boy had his eyes closed. "What's wrong? Please be honest with me."

Naruto opened his eyes and stared at him, and though Sasuke wasn't sure how he felt about it he did see the love that was brimming in them. "I'm just not quite ready for this bet to be over and the end seems to be approaching very quickly." Sasuke realized that they'd been thinking about the same thing.

"It... doesn't have to end when the bet does. We could make it a steady thing. Let me take you on a date-" He was cut off.

"No. This can't go farther than the bet. I'm sorry Sasuke," he said harshly and pulled out of him. He got up and left so that he could go clean up. Sasuke laid there feeling slightly hurt. Didn't he love him? He'd heard him say so only days ago, so what had changed. He thought about bringing up the fact that he'd overheard that particular conversation, but decided against it. He'd give Naruto until the end of the bet before he'd use that to slap some sense into him. A part of him hoped that Naruto would tell him on his own, that he loved him and what he'd been talking about with Hinata. But a much bigger part of him knew that the fool never would. He sighed and got up to go clean himself off as well, only to stumble into Naruto who had already been bringing him a wet cloth.

"Thanks," he murmured. Naruto nodded to him and made his way over to the bed. "Are you hungry?" he asked quietly, not really expecting an answer.

"No. Thank you though. I think I just want to go to sleep." He nodded and left the room. He made himself some dinner and even put a plate in the fridge in case Naruto woke up at some point in the middle of the night and went looking. He sat on the couch and debated about what to do next. Pooling together all of his courage he went back into the bedroom intending to lay down with the stubborn blond whether or not he wanted it, but he found that Naruto was already asleep. He was more than a little disturbed when he saw the evidence that he'd been crying. Without a second thought Sasuke climbed in behind Naruto and wrapped himself protectively around him. Naruto unconsciously snuggled up to him, mumbling his name as he did so. The words "I love you" followed on a sigh and Sasuke smiled. He held him tightly and fell asleep.

_Sasuke was making love with Naruto when all of a sudden the blond boy disappeared. He got up and searched everywhere for him, but no matter how hard he looked, despite the fact that he was searching far and wide, he just couldn't find him. None of his friends knew where he was, but when he asked Hinata she just started crying. Suddenly Kakashi was standing next to her, rubbing her back soothingly and looking at Sasuke accusingly. "Why didn't you save him?" Tsunade was there too, by his side, glaring at him. "You knew. You knew, but you did nothing." Kakashi threw something at him and he scrambled for it, but it slipped through his fingers. "Hope you enjoy your letter," he said harshly. "Why Sasuke? You knew he loved you. Wasn't that enough?" Hinata sobbed. "I don't know! I don't know where he went! I'm trying to find him I swear!" he cried, but everyone just shook their heads at him. "You'll never find him Sasuke," Hinata whispered, her eyes filled with some sort of knowledge that was just out of his reach. They knew where he was. Why wouldn't they tell him? Why hadn't they brought him back themselves? Suddenly Jiraiya was there. "He was like a son to me. Everytime I get close to someone they just fade away," he whispered, tears streaming down his cheeks as he motioned with his arms the act of someone disappearing forever. Where was Naruto? He sat down, defeated. Everyone glared at him. They asked the same thing. Why didn't you do something? He had no answer. He didn't know. Then everyone was gone and it was just him, but he was seven years old again and he was all alone. He started to cry. Itachi was standing over him with blood on his hands. "Why did you take Naruto from me?" his seven year old self whimpered. "I took them all Sasuke. Everyone you loved. Every single one. How does it feel to be without the people you love? Do you miss them? Do you miss Naruto?" He cackled loudly. "Naruto!" he cried in despair. _

Sasuke sat upright as his heart did it's best to pound its way out of his chest. He glanced down and saw the boy next to him, the one who'd come to mean so much to him. He was thrashing around slightly, murmuring his name. Sasuke sighed and laid back down, took him into his arms. Naruto quit his fretting and settled against him. For now he was safe, and he had exactly sixteen days to confide in him before Sasuke was going to beat it out of him anyways and help him whether or not he wanted it. He remembered his dream, especially the part about Itachi, and it made him wonder. "I love you too," he whispered experimentally and decided he liked the sound of that. Apparently Naruto did too because he smiled. He went to sleep with a slight smile on his face at the decision that he would save Naruto from whatever big scary monster was after him.


	7. Chapter 7

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. **

**A/N: Just thought I'd answer Kanaxmochi's question here instead of in a private message because it occurred to me that others might be wondering the same thing. First I just want to say thanks for asking. :) Okay, so I have a personal goal to make all of my stories at least fifteen chapters long. When I'm looking through complete stories I usually skip over any that aren't at least that long unless something about them catches my eye and they're at least over ten. That being said, I do not plan on ending this story anytime soon. Just wanted to clear that up. **

**Chapter Seven.**

And he was back to ignoring him again. It was really starting to tick him off. He'd woken up alone in bed and Naruto hadn't been anywhere in the house. He'd waited around at the apartment for him to come back, but it wasn't until midnight that he actually came creeping in. At that point Sasuke had just pretended to be asleep. Why didn't Naruto want to see him? That question had kept him up all night. The following days had been just the same. It had been almost five days now since Sasuke had talked to Naruto. "You know, just because the uke doesn't get as attached as they would if they were a virgin doesn't mean they wouldn't like a little attention," he muttered as he made his way to the training grounds. He froze when he saw that Hinata was there. "Hey! Don't run away, okay? I need to talk to you. Please." Something about his voice must have registered with her because she looked at him with wide eyes and he could swear he saw sympathy in them.

"Sasuke. What happened? You look terrible!" she murmured. Did he really look that bad? He winced when he thought of why that was.

"What happened was you. You said something to Naruto, and don't try to deny it because I heard you, and now he won't even talk to me! He started to cut back contact the day after you guys talked. He wouldn't look at me properly, he wouldn't touch me, he wouldn't... wouldn't kiss me," he barely said that last part, but he decided he was going to be completely honest with her. "After a week of that I couldn't take it anymore. I kissed him. I missed him and he wouldn't touch me! He acted like it was nothing though he did seem a little surprised. He sure didn't do it back! So I followed him into the shower... and we ended up... well... you know..." He felt how red his face was and he was immensely glad that no one else was here to witness this. "And ever since then he won't come home if he thinks I'm awake. I woke up alone the next day and I waited _all day_ for him to come home only to watch him sneak in after midnight. I haven't even _talked_ to him in the last five days!" His voice broke, but he figured dignity was overrated when it came to stuff like this. "What do I do? I can't stand this," he whispered.

She gasped and put her hand over he mouth. "You really...?" She was stunned.

"Yeah. I really care about him. Seems like your wish overruled his." He sat down and put his face in his hands. "I can't sleep anymore. I just feel so wrong without having him next to me, knowing that he's trying to avoid me. It's like he doesn't care. I thought he said he loved me." He shook his head. He really felt like an idiot right now. What was wrong with him? "I asked him to let me take him on a date. I asked him not to end this after the bet is over. I pretty much begged him to be with me, but he threw it in my face. Said it couldn't go farther than the bet and he was sorry. He doesn't want me." The words hurt terribly, but he had to say them, had to voice his worst fears. He felt a gentle hand on his back and he looked up.

"I'm sorry. When we talked, I realized that he was probably right in not wanting you to fall for him. And I was a little angry at you. I thought you would be the one to break his heart, not the other way around." He started to protest, but she just gave him a look that seemed to cut through his indecision and make him admit to himself that he was a little heartbroken. He felt used and lonely, but most of all he felt hurt. "Maybe I can talk to him," she offered.

"No. I should do it. I should come clean and tell him what I heard and what I feel, that I'm not okay with being shoved in a corner and left alone. I just don't know how to get him to listen. He's never home. He probably gets less sleep than I do these days and that hardly seems possible. I don't want it to be over. I only have nine days left. What if he won't give me more? I'm so confused."

"You'll find a way to get him to let you stick around. I have faith in you." She took a deep breath. "Come with me. I know where he is." He was on his feet in an instant. She led him out of the village and into the forest that surrounded the wall. It wasn't long before they spotted Naruto doing handstand pushups. He hugged Hinata and thanked her. She smiled at him and wished him luck before leaving.

He waited for Naruto to be upright once again before he rushed him and pinned him to a tree. His lips connected with their target easily and he thrust his tongue into Naruto's mouth. Naruto struggled a little, but it seemed half-hearted. He pulled back and looked into his eyes. "Listen to me. Please. I can't stand this. I want you back Naruto. You were wrong in your assumption. I did get attached. And you ignoring me is killing me! Please come home. Let me be with you. Let me take you on a date. I don't care what big scary monster is hiding in your closet, I'm not going to let it get you. You don't have to tell me what you and Hinata were talking about, but it doesn't matter because I'm going to protect you from it. I care about you Naruto, I did even before this though it was as a friend not a lover. That doesn't change the fact though. I'm not going to let anything happen to you, so will you please stop trying to ditch me? Please?"

Naruto was staring at him, shocked. "You heard my conversation with Hinata?"

"Yeah. Sorry. I don't usually listen in on things that don't concern me," he said guiltily. "I, uh, overheard your conversation with Tsunade too..." he admitted, shuffling his feet. He felt like a scolded school boy. He almost laughed at the mental image, but this was too serious for him to even crack a smile right now.

"You heard everything?" he whispered, not looking at Sasuke.

"You mean about you loving me? Yeah. That's why this has been so hard. I thought I had nothing to lose and I threw myself at your feet, but then you just turned around and walked away. I felt so lost. I'm not just going to wait anymore though, I need you back now. I can't sleep without you," he said in a rush. Naruto looked mortified. "I would have known anyways," he rushed to assure him. "You whispered it in your sleep the last time we shared a bed."

A single tear slid down the blond's cheek. "I'm sorry. I never intended for you to find out."

"Well, it's too late for that. Besides... I never said I didn't say it back," he said in one breath.

"What?" Naruto whispered, but Sasuke could still hear the pain in even that tiny breath of speech.

"When you said it in your sleep... I said it too. I... I love you too Naruto. I don't want us to be like this anymore, please."

Naruto let another tear slip and he shook his head slowly. His face was a mask of pain. "I never wanted you to love me Sasuke. I'm so sorry. I should never have done this to you."

"Naruto, I don't care about whatever you think is going to happen to you! I'm not going to let it happen. Please, just set that aside for now."

"I can't set it aside Sasuke." He looked him straight in the eye for the first time in what felt like forever. "I'm dying Sasuke. Kyuubi's chakra has permanently damaged my body and it's slowly poisoning me. There's no cure. Even if they were to extract the nine-tails I would die from the extraction itself." Sasuke let go of Naruto's wrists, watched them drop defeatedly to the boy's side. He stared into those beautiful blue eyes and saw that he was telling the truth. He felt his whole world come tumbling down. "I've already asked Gaara. He doesn't have any ideas. All of us have brainstormed for countless hours. Kakashi, Tsunade, Jiraiya, Shizune and Gaara have all been searching desperately for a solution. There's nothing that can be done Sasuke. And I don't have much longer to live. A month more at the most is what Tsunade is predicting. I never meant for you to fall for me. I'm so sorry," he sobbed brokenly. Sasuke sank to his knees, too numb to do anything. The words chased each other through his mind and he felt something resembling despair fill him. Naruto stayed for a little while, clearly worried about him, but then he left, unable to stand Sasuke's pain. Sasuke stayed there for quite some time.

"No. I won't let it happen," he whispered. He had no idea what he could do, but he knew he was going to do something. He got slowly to his feet, waited until he was sure that Naruto wouldn't hear him sneaking in to get his stuff and then left the village. He wasn't going to give up that easily. He took a deep breath and used the few tracking skills he possessed to find the one person who might be able to help him.

"Well, well, little brother. What brings you here?" Itachi said calmly, not even opening his eyes. So it's a clone then. Sasuke sighed. It didn't matter. He wasn't here to kill him today. He needed his help.

"I need some information." Itachi sat up in surprise.

"You mean you're not here to take revenge?"

"It wouldn't matter if I was because you're not the real body, but no. That's not what I came for. I have to set that aside for now. Something more important has come up."

"I'm impressed," Itachi murmured.

"Yeah, well, I didn't come here to impress you. Look. I have a problem that has to do with the tailed beasts and I thought that someone from the Akatsuki would be my best bet. Luckily I know one of the members personally," he finished sarcastically.

"What do you need to know?" Itachi asked, surprisingly willing to help.

"My lover is dying. The Kyuubi's chakra is poisoning him. I won't let that happen. I need to know how I can fix it, how I can save him."

"You're lover? You and Naruto have become that close? And you didn't kill him yourself?" Itachi didn't seem to be condescending; instead he just seemed curious.

"Look. I'm not like you. I don't slaughter the people I love. I'm not going to get stronger by stooping so low, so you can give up on any hopes of me following in your footsteps."

"I'm glad. I always hoped that would be your choice." Sasuke was extremely confused now. What the hell was he talking about? "I think you're old enough now to know the truth. I didn't kill the clan. I found them, just like you, but I knew who had done it and I didn't want you to ever get the idea that should go after him. So I told you it was me. I figured if you were busy chasing me, someone who would rather die than hurt you, then you were safe."

Sasuke felt doubt rise inside him. "What about your Mangekyo? You have to kill your closest friend in order to obtain that."

"The real culprit had gotten to him first and convinced him that I would try to take his life for just that reason. It made him paranoid. When I saw him next he attacked me. I tried desperately to get him to calm down and listen to me. The battle lasted for hours because I didn't want to harm him, but he'd seriously injured me and my survival instincts took over. Next thing I knew I had raised my arm in an attempt to sheild myself from him and I'd forgetten about the kunai I had in my hand. He impaled himself on it. It was a horrible, tragic accident. I never meant to do it. However, you don't actually have to do the act of killing your closest person you know. You only have feel the pain of losing someone so close to you. Anyone could have killed Shisui in front of me and it would have had the same effect."

Sasuke was stunned. "How do I know you are telling the truth?" he asked suspiciously.

"You don't. You just have to trust me. I am your brother and I love you, but I can't make you see what you don't want to see, not even my sharingan can do that. Now, as for your little problem, I think I might have a solution. However, I'm coming with you."

**So a lot of you guessed it, but there's no way I could let my favorite blond in the whole world die. -Shudders- Let's see if anyone can guess what's next. :) So, totally random, but I love the theme song for Tales of Graces and you should listen to it. I was listening to it while I wrote this. Anyways, hope this chapter didn't suck too bad. It's not my best. :(**


	8. Chapter 8

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. **

**Just out of curiosity, does anyone know how to work aff? I can't figure out how to add anything...**

**Chapter Eight.**

"So what exactly are we doing?" Sasuke asked as they made camp that night. The real Itachi had met up with him after the clone had been traveling with him for half an hour.

"We're saving your boyfriend. Isn't that why you're here?"

"Of course baka. I want to know where exactly you're taking me and why." Sasuke rolled his eyes. He felt like he was a kid again and Itachi was evading him. He kept flinching whenever Itachi moved his hands because he thought he was going to poke him in the forehead. It was starting to wear on his nerves.

"Well, you said the problem is the tailed beast's chakra, right?" Sasuke nodded. "Well it just so happens that there is a particular jinchuuriki that we have not been able to catch yet. The reason for that being that he and his tailed beast cooperate with each other. I'm thinking that if we can get this guy to train Naruto so that he can live peacefully with Kurama then your little blond might have a choice."

Sasuke added a log to the fire. "Kurama?" he asked curiously.

"Yeah. That's Kyuubi's name. Strangely enough they do have names." Itachi threw a few twigs in and watched them burn.

"Why did you join the Akatsuki?" The question was halting, but it was strangely important.

Itachi was quiet for a little while. "I have no reason. No valid ones anyways, at least not for the law. As a matter of fact, the man who killed everyone is connected to the group. By all indications they should be the last group I should ever want to be associated with."

Sasuke was trying to keep his anger down at the admission that Itachi worked with the murderer. "I have to admit, you're not building a very good case for yourself."

"I know. It's just..." He sighed. "I wanted you to be safe, so when I left and I told you that it was me I went looking for the culprit on my own. When I found him I realized that you were still in danger as long as he was alive and that I couldn't beat him. So, I made a deal with him. I'd help him in his quest if he would leave the village alone. And you, even if you weren't in the village. I did what I felt I had to do. I still can't defeat him and until I reach that point I can't leave. Once I'm stong enough then I will. That's all there is to it."

Sasuke wasn't sure how he felt about that explanation, but it seemed as probable as any. Especially considering the fact that Itachi was currently helping him, his brother who he treated like an enemy, to save one of the tailed beasts. He was starting to have doubts about his brother's guilt and he wasn't sure how to react to that. He nodded to acknowledge that he'd heard the story and then made himself comfortable for the night. It occured to him as he felt himself fading into unconsciousness that he shouldn't feel so safe falling asleep around Itachi. For some reason his body didn't seem to care because it did it anyway.

They'd been traveling for three days now and his brother hadn't turned on him yet. He was starting to belief, however grudgingly, that Itachi really might be innocent. The only question was: what was he going to do about it? He couldn't just leave Itachi with his bad reputation when he didn't deserve it. Maybe once Naruto found out the truth and that he'd helped to save him that would be enough to sway Tsunade at least a little. But how was he going to get Itachi out of Akatsuki? He wouldn't just be able to walk away, not when he knew their would definitely have to take down this guy that Itachi kept talking about. He'd never said his name, but he was sure that if he told him what he wanted to happen that he would divulge that information. "How much longer is this going to take?" he asked worriedly when Itachi still wasn't showing signs that they were close as night began to fall.

"We should be there around this time tomorrow," he informed calmly. "Have you thought about what you're going to say to him?"

"A little. I don't exactly have a speech prepared."

"Well I suggest you prepare one. You'll need to have the basics down before you try to convert it to a rap."

"A rap? Why the hell am I converting anything to a rap?" he asked incredulously.

"This guy obsesses over it. Everything he says rhymes. You'll get a lot farther by rapping than talking."

"That's ludicrous! What kind of character is this guy?"

"An interesting one. We'll stop here for the night," he announced before dropping out of the trees. "You need to rest a lot tonight because we're going to be using a decent amount of chakra tomorrow. We're going to have to spend about an hour on the water and we don't exactly have time to make a boat."

"How is it that you know where this guy is and yet you haven't captured him yet?"

"For one thing, none of us are strong enough to take him on even as a team. For another, I don't exactly relay everything I know to the Akatsuki. I don't particularly want to hand over tailed beasts to them you know. And lastly, Naruto is my assigned beast so I have no reason to go after the eight tails." Sasuke growled at the information that Itachi had been assigned to Naruto. "Relax. I was never going to do it. I was just biding my time and it was only natural that he would be mine when I have a protection order over the village. If I was really on their side then why would I be saving him now when we could have Kyuubi here in just a few weeks according to you?"

That did make sense. "We should rest." He turned his back on his brother and let his mind wonder about what he was going to do to get him out of the organization he'd been a part of for going on ten years now.

For the first time in years Sasuke got eight hours of sleep. When Itachi woke him up he felt unnaturally energized. He hadn't realized he'd been neglecting his body so much because sleep had never seemed all that important. By the time they made it to the ocean they would be crossing for a while he was hyped up the way Gai and Lee always were. The exertion from using so much chakra didn't even seem to phase him. Maybe this was how Naruto always seemed to have so much energy! The first twenty minutes went by in silence, but then Sasuke broke it to try out his rap speech. Aside from a few snorts of laughter Itachi gave him his brother was rather helpful. By the time they got there he felt he was prepared. And then they were in front of a very buff man with dark sunglasses.

"Itachi I see that you have returned. Are you ready to once again get burned?" the man asked with a grin.

"My rap isn't as bad as you make it out to be. Just because you are the best do not discrimate against me," Itachi returned easily.

"I will admit that your lyrics have gotten better. Now let's just see if you can keep your mind out of the gutter." The man wagged his eyebrows.

"I am not so bad as you make me out. I am not a pervert prancing about."

"You talk about that silly blond quite enough. You're a perv in my book if you talk about that stuff."

"Let us set that aside for another. I would like for you to meet my brother."

"Ah little Sasuke has come to see me. Hello Sasuke, my name is Killer Bee."

"Just call him Bee," Itachi whispered.

"Hello Bee, it's nice to meet you. I have heard a lot about you too."

"Oh how it makes me happy to hear him rhyme. At least you took time to prepare the visitor this time."

"I apologize for my previous stupidity. I was not aware when I first came what awaited me."

"All is forgiven now that you have learned. Now Sasuke tell me what knowledge you wish to earn."

"I have a very close friend you see. I must say now that he is a jinchuuriki."

"This is surprising to say the least. Not many befriend a holder of a beast." Bee looked thoughtful so it encouraged him.

"I have been friends with him for quite a while. We're lovers now, but we're going through a trial."

"I am very intersted to hear what's on your mind. Though don't be like Itachi and talk of how you grind."

"Bee I've told you many times that was a one time thing. I was simply seeking advice on whether it was a fling."

"You still talk about that blond even now that you know. And to tell the truth our conversations tend to be so."

"You are just as perverted as I to hold such things against me. If you would not ask such questions our discussions wouldn't be."

"Moving on to Sasuke's problems, please let us continue. I want to hear more about this boy and what you need to do."

Sasuke couldn't help snickering at the fact that this guy thought his brother was a perv. It didn't surprise him. This was turning out to be very intersting indeed. "He is the holder of Kyuubi and the chakra makes him ill. It poisons him ever so slowly and we fear that it will kill. I came to ask if you might grant me your much needed aid. We need to teach him how to cope, and I've heard of the bond that you made. Perhaps if he can live peacefully with that demon fox he'll live. The sannin Tsunade last time she checked had only one month to give. I will do anything to keep him securely by my side. For him I have even gone and set aside my pride. Itachi informs me that you are my only hope. Do you think that you might be willing to teach him how to cope?" He held his breath. Damn, rhyming was harder than he thought.

"I will admit that I feel drawn to a fellow jinchuuriki. And the bond that you two share does in fact intrigue me. Very well, you may bring him and I'll do what I am able. I cannot promise anything, but I'll cover every angle. Talking with the both of you has truly been a pleasure. I look forward to your return and to meeting your greatest treasure." He gave them the peace sign and walked away.

"I think that went well," Itachi said.

"So, you're a pervert, huh?" Sasuke asked slyly, unwilling to talk about how relieved he felt after that difficult talk.

"Shut up. It was one time! And then he started asking everytime I came back!"

"So who was she?" he asked curiously.

"He," Itachi muttered grumpily as they made their way back onto the water. Sasuke raised an eyebrow. "He's an annoying blond I met after Orochimaru left the Akatsuki. And he just so happens to be my boyfriend for the time being."

"Really? I'm surprised at you. You never seemed the type for a fling..."

"Well it didn't turn out to be a fling, did it?" he hissed.

"But you were worried it was one in the beginning."

"Just shut up." He glowered at the water while Sasuke grinned. Things were starting to look up. They stayed at the same place as they had the previous night in order to conserve their energy for the trek home. They both went to bed thinking about their individual blonds and Sasuke marveled at their apparent similarity in true relationship material. Maybe some people were just meant to be on the same path in life. Both had set out to avenge their family's death. Both had turned to the same person for help when it came down to it, and both for the same reason which just happened to be an important blond in both cases. It really was strange how alike they were. He sighed as they settled in for the night and he closed his eyes to images of Naruto. He fell asleep thinking about him and found himself dreaming of the blond in his life who'd come to mean so much. Oddly enough he'd been the thing to bring his brother back into his life. He owed the boy a lot.

**That rap scene was surprisingly easy. I thought it was going to be hard, but since this is a fanfic I was able to tweak Bee a little so that I didn't have to worry about staying in character and it was a smooth ride after that. Hope it wasn't too abnormal for Bee...**


	9. Chapter 9

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. **

**I think this story might turn out to be my shortest. I'm going to reach chapter fifteen if it kills me, but no promises after that. This was just kind of a fluf story that randomly popped into my head. It has no real body. Let me know if there's something in particular you'd like me to add to it. **

**Slight spoilers. Sorry. It's a little shorter than usual. **

**Chapter Nine.**

He watched as the blond tossed and turned in his sleep. He was obviously agitated. Sasuke wondered if he'd missed him. He was going to have to wake him up soon, but he didn't want to just yet. Getting an idea he leaned down and pressed his lips to the boy's soft, pouty ones. Naruto responded to him with a fervor that had been absent in his waking hours. He carefully slipped his tongue into the tan boy's mouth and moaned. God he'd missed this. He climbed on top of him and straddled the sleeping boy. Itachi could wait a little while. He felt the blond's arousal through the layers that seperated him. Without giving himself time to rethink what he was about to do he pulled the sheet down and took him into his mouth. Naruto made a sound that sounded like someone had knocked the breath out of him and Sasuke felt sleepy fingers slip into his hair. He continued his ministrations and noticed when the hazy pleasure turned into alertness as the body beneath him became rigid. "Sasuke!" Naruto gasped in shock. He tried to pull him up, but Sasuke threatened him with his teeth. Naruto moaned and laid back down, his hands clenching in his hair. Sasuke kept bobbing his head. "You shouldn't be doing this," Naruto protested weakly.

"Shut up," Sasuke growled around the thickness in his mouth. Naruto stopped talking and started making those amazingly delicious sounds of his. When he came Sasuke moaned as well at the pleasure he felt upon tasting the boy's essence. Naruto lay there panting and twitching. Sasuke ignored his own erection and climbed up to once again straddle the boy. Naruto was gazing up at him.

"Where have you been?" he finally managed. "I was..." Sasuke raised an eyebrow. "...worried about you..." he finished. Sasuke was extremely happy to hear that.

"No time to explain right now. I just need you to trust me. Pack an overnight bag and get dressed for traveling." Sasuke kissed him passionately before getting up and going out to pack some of Naruto's precious ramen. When the blond appeared in front of him dressed warmly with a satchel over his shoulder Sasuke felt a surge of satisfaction at the fact that Naruto obviously trusted him. Sasuke picked up the bag with the ramen and used his free hand to gently tug Naruto into the dark night. The fact that it was a new moon aided them considerably. When they got to the forest outside the gates he found Itachi. Naruto gasped when he saw him and started to talk very loudly. Sasuke calmly placed a hand over his mouth.

"Everything went well?" Itachi inquired. Sasuke nodded. "Alright. Let's go." Naruto followed them warily and Sasuke made sure to always stay behind the blond so that he couldn't sneak off on them or something.

"I can't believe you're taking me to Akatsuki," Naruto hissed on one of the rare occasions that Sasuke got close. The raven heard the note of betrayal in Naruto's voice and immediately realized that the blond thought he was willingly making his way to his slightly progressed demise.

"We're not going to Akatsuki. Itachi is only helping us as my brother, nothing more." He slipped his hand into Naruto's. "I would have hoped you trusted me enough to realize that." The blond looked at him apologetically. They carried on in silence. This time they didn't stop for camp. If anyone noticed that Naruto was now missing as well they would surely send out a search party. Naruto was very valuable to the village. It only took two days of nonstop traveling to reach their destination. Before they crossed the ocean they took a small break.

"Will someone please explain things to me?" Naruto asked around a yawn. Itachi just continued to dig out the salted meat.

"We may have found a solution to your problem," Sasuke explained.

"That impossible!" Naruto said in disbelief, shaking his head in denial.

"It's not. There is one particular jinchuuriki who has managed to co-exist with his tailed beast. He's going to try and train you to do the same. If you can control the nine-tails' chakra then you can at least hold it off long enough for Tsunade to heal you. I'm counting on it," Sasuke explained quietly. He watched Naruto gnaw on some pork.

"You really think this will work?" Naruto asked gently. He was looking at Sasuke with a mixture of sorrow and pity.

"It has to. Because I'm not letting you go," he whispered.

"Okay. We should get going. It will be nightfall by the time we get there," Itachi stated. The three of them got up and started across the water.

"Oh! You have come back once more. If I'm not mistaken that was quicker than before. This is the jinchuuriki you were talking about. He does indeed look a little worn out. What is your name blondie, please do tell? I am intersted in getting to know you as well."

Naruto shifted next to Sasuke. They'd been practicing his rhyming since they started running across the water, but sadly he sucked tremendously at it. "My name is Naruto Uzumaki. I've been informed that you're Killer Bee." So far so good.

"I see you have learned the correct way to speak. If you don't mind me saying your rhyming's a little weak."

"I apologize for my lack of skills. I realize that..." Naruto trailed off as he tried to come up with a rhyme.

Bee groaned. "I see what you mean he is definitely sick. I will do my best to fix him up quick. I sense he does not have a clumsy tongue, see? I'm sure this imbalance is due to Kyuubi." He gazed at the blond for a moment. "It's very late and you look rather ill. We should all get some sleep until the sun clears the hill." Everyone nodded and followed him back to his home. Everyone picked a room, but Sasuke stubbornly insisted that he and Naruto share. The boy finally gave in. As he was drifting off to sleep he felt the way Naruto turned into his embrace and scooted a little closer. The last thing he heard was Naruto whispering 'thank you'.

**(Going to do something a little different here.) **

**Kakashi's POV.**

No one had been able to find Sasuke. The first day no one had noticed that he was missing because Naruto was avoiding him and the team had that day off. The next day however had been when the worry set in. They searched the whole village for him. By the time the third day had come to an end people had been frantic. And that's when Naruto had come clean about everything that had been happening between Sasuke and him. After that the panic had died down a little. When it was going on the seventh day without any word from his student Kakashi had to admit that his fears had come back full swing. And what Sakura came running up to him to tell him didn't make things any better.

"Kakashi-sensei!" she cried out as she got closer. She stopped in front of him panting from exertion. "Naruto! He's missing! We can't find him anywhere!" she gasped out. He felt something settle into his gut. Something was very wrong here. He rushed to Tsunade's office.

"What is it Kakashi?" Tsunade asked tiredly. She'd been just as worried about Sasuke as everyone else had and it was starting to take its toll on her.

"Naruto's missing. No one can find him," he informed her calmly despite his sinking feeling.

She sighed heavily. "I'll send out some people to search the village, but you and I both know he went after Sasuke."

"I don't know. It seems like something he would do, but at the same thing something feels off. Why would Sasuke stay gone so long in the first place if he was worried about Naruto? And why would Naruto leave in the dead of night?"

"I don't know. I don't even know if I can think anymore. The most logical conclusion is that he went after Sasuke and that's what I'm going to assume until someone proves me wrong," she said defeatedly.

"What if he never makes it back?" Kakashi murmured hoarsely. He watched as Tsunade's whole body tensed. "He only has a few more weeks at best," he reminded her gently.

"You want to go after him, don't you?" she asked in a strained voice. The fact that he could kick the bucket any day now made everyone feel like they'd been gut punched.

"I would like to, yes," Kakashi admitted. He waited impatiently for her to make a decision.

"Okay. Go after him and bring him home Kakashi." She turned away from him and ordered a few of the Anbu to spread out and search the village for the blond. Kakashi left quickly and headed out of the village.

**(Back to normal.)**

Sasuke watched as Naruto sat on a small island in the middle of a pond at the end of a waterfall. Bee had instructed him to sit there until he faced his true self. Naruto sat perfectly still and seemed to be completely relaxed. It wasn't until he gasped and fell backwards, effectively breaking the spell, that Sasuke knew he'd been mistaken. The blond stood up shakily and distanced himself from the waterfall. He came to sit by Sasuke. "I don't know how this is supposed to help me," he muttered.

"Just try, okay? What did you see?" he asked curiously.

"I saw someone who couldn't possibly be me," he grumbled. Sasuke realized that it had disturbed him terribly whatever it was.

"You should try again," Sasuke coaxed. Naruto stood up with a sigh and made his way back to the little island thing. As soon as he closed his eyes Sasuke activated his sharingan. He projected himself into Naruto's mind and was stunned by what he saw. There was another Naruto there, but his eyes were a demonic, glowing red. His smile seemed somehow different than _his_ Naruto's. It sent shivers down his spine.

"You know I'm right. Secretly you hate them all. One day you'll break under all the crap they throw at you and you're going to kill them all. You're a monster Naruto. Just like me. I _am_ you, you just don't know it yet. This is what you'll end up as several years down the road. If you last that long that is." The demonic Naruto laughed and it was different from Naruto's laugh, more sinister.

"You're wrong. Yes I do resent them at times. Who wouldn't? But I'm not a monster, I'm not like you. They can throw whatever they want at me and I'll never resort to such violence. I'm strong enough to take it. But you're right. I won't last that long." Naruto was glaring at his other self challengingly. Sasuke removed himself from the session and turned to his brother who was sitting a couple of yards away. He saw that Itachi was staring at him curiously and he took a deep breath before wiping away whatever expression was on his face. It turned out to be a very long and trying day.


	10. Chapter 10

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. **

**Hey guys. Sorry about the wait. I recently started a new job and I never seem to be home. Updates may be switched to weekends. Sorry.**

**Chapter Ten.**

Night had fallen and Itachi and Bee had left them for the comfort of their own beds. Sasuke was walking next to the blond as they made their way to their shared room. Naruto opened the door and walked in, but when Sasuke tried to follow the boy turned around and glared at him. The raven had never seen him so angry and for a moment he felt a tingle of fear. Then he realized that it was Naruto and no matter how mad he might be he would never hurt Sasuke. Still he was surprised by this sudden change in the blond. "What's got your panties in a knot?"

"Firstly, I'm not wearing any undergarments at the moment, so not only were you wrong about what type, but now you just look like a baka. Secondly, you're not sleeping in here tonight. Go get your own room." He'd growled all of this through clenched teeth.

Sasuke was momentarily distracted by Naruto's claim that he wasn't wearing any underwear, but the rest of his words started to sink in and he found himself getting angry as well. "Why the hell not?" he roared.

"Did you honestly think I wouldn't feel you poking around in my head? What you did was sneaky and hurtful. That was my personal stuff and you violated it. I don't know if I trust you anymore Sasuke. I feel as though you've stabbed me in the back and I don't know how to deal with that. I still love you dammit and I can't just cut you out of my life, but things are going to change from now on. You went too far this time." The blond was staring at the floor by the time he finished.

Sasuke couldn't believe this. Naruto was overreacting. So he should have asked, and yeah it was okay for him to be angry that he hadn't, but this was going overboard. It's not like he'd been eavesdropping on a private moment or something. "You're blowing this out of proprtion," he began.

"No. I'm not. You have a bad tendancy to eavesdrop and it's getting old, fast. I don't know how to feel about a friend who won't wrap his mind around the prospect of boundaries and I refuse to be in any kind of relationship with someone who doesn't respect my privacy. All you had to do was ask Sasuke. If I'd known it meant so much to you to know then I would have told you. What you did today though just makes what my other self said while you were listening seem a little more valid. I'm not exactly in the best frame of mind right now, but I do know what's important to me and being able to trust you is part of it. After today I don't know that I can. I'm sorry. Goodnight." And he shut the door in his face.

Sasuke stood there, stunned. Had that really just happened, or had he fallen asleep outside? Because that really didn't seem real. Had Naruto really just admitted to his face that he loved him and then locked him out and refused to have a relationship with him? After everything they'd been through? He couldn't seem to think properly at the moment. His chest hurt. Not wanting to wander around a place he didn't know well at night he slowly made his way back to his brother's room. He didn't knock, though he thought about it in retrospect and realized that he should have, but Itachi was still awake and almost seemed to be expecting him. Had he heard somehow? "Trouble in paradise?" he asked lazily.

"Shut up," Sasuke growled. He made his way to the bed and laid opposite his brother. Sure he might be smelling his feet a lot during the night if he wasn't careful, but he needed to think about things and he wouldn't be able to if the stupid jerk was snoring in his ear all night. He tended to do that.

"He's right you know. You should learn how to respect other people's privacy." His voice was quiet, but Sasuke heard.

So he had overheard them somehow. "Hn," he grunted before turning towards the wall. _Just go to sleep, stupid._

"Goodnight otouto," Itachi murmured.

"Hn." Why did people say _good_night when it obviously wasn't going to be one? He let himself sputter about random stuff in his mind for a few moments before he focused on the real problem. What was he going to do to win Naruto back? That was a hard one. The dobe wasn't even convinced he'd be alive much longer and he already didn't want to get close. That made things even more difficult. He had a few ideas, but they seemed kind of lame. He sighed. He wasn't going to get anywhere tonight so he might as well go to sleep. Yeah, right. Like that was going to happen.

. .

This sucked. He'd left a warm bowl of ramen and some fresh picked flowers along with a simple "I'm Sorry" note out in front of Naruto's door that morning before leaving. He figured he'd start with a nice gesture that might make the blond second guess being mad at him and then he wouldn't show up to watch him practice. Within the first few hours Naruto would start wondering where he was even though he didn't want to care about that. Then he'd move to being a little worried which he'd try to ignore, but then he'd start wondering if he'd been a little too harsh on him. By about lunch time he'd be extremely worried and wouldn't care about caring anymore. After another hour or so he'd pretty much be ready to start looking for Sasuke, but he'd be feeling kind of guilty which would stop him from doing so. By the time night fell he'd be feeling horrible and wishing to see the raven. By that point Sasuke would be waiting outside his door with more flowers and ramen - he'd surely be hungry after training - and Naruto would readily invite him in after they both apologized to each other and hugged. It was cheesey, and there was a big possibility it wouldn't work, and yes, even if it did it would still be a sneaky thing, but he needed Naruto to let him get close again. He'd missed him tremendously last night. He felt a little bad about his plan, but he was convinced that it was the only way to get back on Naruto's good side. After the first hour though he was going crazy. Was the plan working? What if Naruto didn't even notice he wasn't there? What if this just made him angrier? This was stupid... Maybe he shouldn't have done this. He was just about to go running to Naruto when he felt a new chakra flare up on the island. _What the hell..?_

It was heading towards Naruto. He panicked and went racing after it. He froze in his tracks and his jaw dropped when he came upon the scene. A fiery blond woman was shouting at Itachi who to most people would seem indifferent, but to Sasuke looked more than a little frightened. Bee was snickering off to the side and Naruto was watching with interest. "How _dare_ you just take off again without letting me know! It's been more than a week! Do you have any idea how worried I've been? What if you were hurt, or dying, or even dead already? What if someone kidnapped you and you were being tortured right this very minute? What if you'd been attacked and you had amnesia and you wandered into enemy territory? What if-" She was cut off by Itachi's lips. Sasuke raised an eyebrow in surprise and confusion. Hadn't Itachi said he had a boyfriend...? His eyes went wide when he realized that this blond _was_ his boyfriend. He looked so feminine! He watched the smaller man struggle against his brother in anger, though his wiggling started to settle down and then he melted into the taller man.

"I'm sorry I worried you. My brother asked for my help. I didn't have time to come back and tell you; it was a matter of life and death," Itachi said softly. The blond scoffed and crossed his arms, turning his head away and pouting. "I'm not lying Deidara. Look." He physically directed the blond's gaze to the other blond. "That boy is dying as we speak and Sasuke needed my help to save him." Naruto nodded slightly. Deidara seemed to deflate and Sasuke was surprised to see tears threatening to spill from his eyes.

"I'm sorry," Deidara whispered. Itachi pulled him into his arms and played with the bottom of his long hair.

"No, you don't need to be. You have every right to be upset. I'm the one who should be sorry, and I am. I didn't mean to worry you." Sasuke was stunned. He'd never heard his brother like this before. What was going on here? Had Itachi really just apologized? He felt like his head was spinning. And now they were kissing. He quickly looked away to give them privacy, but his eyes fell on Naruto and he lowered his eyes in shame.

"I forgive you," was the muffled reply the blond gave Itachi. Sasuke felt his entire body jolt at those words and he glanced up timidly at Naruto once more. Instead of seeing the same anger there that he was sure he'd see if he really looked he saw something else. Naruto's eyes looked soft, tender, and Sasuke felt his breath catch in his lungs. He couldn't speak so he tried to convey how sorry he was with his eyes.

He was surprised when Naruto slowly approached him. "I forgive you," he whispered. Sasuke thought he might pass out if he didn't breathe soon and damn did his chest hurt. His eyes were stinging. Oh no... He blinked them rapidly. He was not going to get all sappy like his brother. However, Naruto seemed to have noticed and he was smiling gently. Sasuke felt his knees threaten to give out as the blond pressed his lips to his in the sweetest kiss they'd ever shared. It was little more than pressing their lips together, but it made Sasuke feel like he could fly.

He pulled away, needing to say what he'd decided. "I promise I'll respect your privacy. From now on, I'll let you be the one to tell me." Naruto grinned and Sasuke wasn't sure whether it was because that made him happy or he was amused by the hoarseness of the raven's voice. He heard someone clear their throat and looked around, only to realize that they had an audience. Itachi looked amused and his eyebrow was twitching slightly. Deidara looked like a was watching a couple of puppies playing with each other. The look he gave them made Sasuke fear for their freedom... Creepy pervert. Bee was grinning widely wiggling his eyebrows. And Kakashi was staring shocked at the entire thing... Wait! Kakashi?! Sasuke gasped and everyone turned around to find the source of his surprise. When they saw who it was there were a lot of reactions. Bee stared curiously, Itachi hid Deidara behind him and Naruto raised an eyebrow.

"Come to join the party?" Naruto asked calmly as he walked over and pushed Kakashi's mouth closed. Figures this wouldn't bother him. Kakashi snapped his eyes to Naruto. "Kakashi, meet my rescue squad plus one. That's Itachi in case you don't know," he began and Kakashi raised an eyebrow at him as if to say 'duh'. "And that's his boyfriend Deidara who only showed up about fifteen minutes ago. That's Bee; he's a jinchuuriki. He has the eight tails. I'm training to control Kyuubi so that Tsunade has enough room to work. It was Sasuke's idea; he orchestrated this whole thing and he really thinks it will work. While I have my doubts, I trust him and I'm willing to try." Sasuke felt a lump grow in his throat when Naruto said he trusted him and he didn't miss the look the blond shot his way. "And unfortunately for you we're going to have to keep you here until we've figured things out because we can't have everyone from the village coming after me, now can we?"

Kakashi seemed to take this in stride. "Like I would leave when I might be able to help," he said easily and leaned against a tree. Naruto grinned. Deidara came out from behind Itachi to watch the man with barely restrained curiosity. Sasuke sat down hard as everything overwhelmed him. This was too much. Naruto came over and kissed him lightly before going back to his session with the waterfall as though nothing had happened. Surprisingly it was only half an hour later that he opened his eyes with a smile on his face.

"Alright. Now that we've accomplished that, what's next?" he asked Bee. Bee winced at his speech pattern, but he answered nonetheless.

Standing up in excitement, Sasuke made his way over to Naruto. "You really got rid of him?" he asked in surprise.

"No. I accepted him. Turns out all he need was a hug." He grinned happily and followed Bee leaving Sasuke to wonder if everything in life was really simpler than everyone thought it was. He caught Kakashi's interested eye and felt himself blush a little.

Suddenly the man was standing right in front of him. Sasuke blinked in surprise. "So, how long have you two been together?" he asked lecherously.

"Since the beginning of the bet pretty much," Sasuke muttered uncomfortably.

"That's why you did all of this. You didn't want to let him go," Kakashi said softly.

Sasuke gulped. "You're right. But it was more than not wanting to. I _can't_. I love him," he said simply. Simple seemed to be the theme of the day today, so he decided to go with it.

Kakashi's eyes softened. "I'm happy for you guys. I hope this works, for both of your sakes."


	11. Chapter 11

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.**

**I'm just going to add *spoilers* to the description after I edit and let you guys guess... It's hard to remember to warn about them when you've been working all day and it's going on one in the morning. Grrr.**

**Chapter Eleven.**

Sasuke was surprised when Naruto poked his head back out a few moments later and said in a surprised tone, "Aren't you coming?" The raven raised both eyebrows as if to say 'am I supposed to be?' before slowly getting up and following after him. "It was your idea to bring me here, I want you with me. Plus, if you don't mind, I'd like your help with this part." Sasuke was surprised. What kind of help could he possibly offer the blond? "Well, you know how you snooped? I kind of need you to do that again. I might need help with this next task. I have to forcibly pull Kyuubi's chakra away from him." That sounded difficult.

"I'd love to help," Sasuke murmured as he slipped his hand into Naruto's. The blond gave it a squeeze as he smiled at him briefly before pulling him over to where Bee was waiting.

"Good luck in there, this next step won't be easy. There are no warnings I can give that won't just sound cheesey. So do your best and I hope you come out. If not you'll have nothing left to worry about," Bee rapped quietly. Sasuke gulped. He didn't want to lose Naruto _now_. He didn't want to lose him at all, but he wasn't ready for it to be over yet either way. He at least wanted to be able to spend his last days holding him and talking about the mysteries of life. He tightened his grip on the seemingly unaffected boy's hand and slowly walked with him into the strange room. He prayed that this wasn't just a big mistake. Naruto took a deep breath.

"I'm ready whenever you are," he said gently. Sasuke could do nothing but nod to let him know he was ready. Naruto sat down and closed his eyes. Sasuke activated his sharingan and projected himself into the blond's head. It was creepy down there. That was the first thought that went through his head when he found himself shin deep in murky water in an underground tunnel of some sort. He heard voices so he followed them and he came into a large room with a couple of torches lining the wall and a huge metal gate on the far wall. Something was radiating poisonous chakra from within the cage and Naruto was standing directly in front of it responding to the menacing growls as he reached his hand up to pull the seal off. Sasuke wanted to shout at him to stop, but it was too late. The seal was off and the beast was out and two other people had appeared and then disappeared along with Naruto. And suddenly Sasuke was all alone with the enormous beast. He gulped and stared at it intently. This was the thing that was killing Naruto. He felt rage well up inside of him. The creature stared at him curiously. He didn't make a move to attack Sasuke which frankly surprised the Uchiha. It seemed to be mesmerized by his eyes actually.

"You're an Uchiha," it growled reverently. Sasuke raised an eyebrow. "I once knew a Madara Uchiha. He controlled me with that damn sharingan of his. I always seem to become weak under the gaze of the sharingan. It's a nasty reaction. I don't like it. I wish you would look away."

"If I looked away now, I'm almost positive you would eat me," Sasuke said in disbelief.

"Well, I can't say I haven't thought about it, but I won't. This time."

"Sorry. I'm still not looking away. I don't trust you. You're killing my best friend."

"From what I hear you're more than friends," the thing chuckled evilly. "And while I would wish him dead if I was my normal self, I do currently reside in his body and dread his death as much as he does. If he dies, I die. I've tried to decrease the amount of chakra he takes from me, but it doesn't seem to make a difference. He's overused his control and something snapped under the strain. I can't heal him anymore, not now." Sasuke didn't want to believe him, but sadly his argument made sense. "Speaking of the brat, where did he run off to?"

"I don't know," Sasuke muttered wondering the same thing himself. And who had those people been? He'd thought he's seen the Yondaime, but he couldn't have. The man was dead. It seemed like an eternal staring contest as they waited a little impatiently for Naruto to return. And then, after almost half an hour, he was back and next to him did indeed stand the Fourth Hokage. Sasuke was stunned. "I don't understand," Sasuke said slowly.

"Sasuke, these are my parents. This is Kushina Uzumaki and of course you know Minato Namikaze, though I had no idea about either of them..." Naruto frowned for a second before grinning again. "My dad incorporated them into the seal before he died so that they could be here when it broke or was removed. They're here to help us." Sasuke was very confused about all of this, but he was willing to do whatever he needed to do.

"Well, I'll help you in any way you can think of, but I think I should throw in that the thing doesn't move when I stare him in the eyes," Sasuke explained. Kyuubi immediatly stared at the ceiling and tried to back up into his cell again. Surprisingly Minato had closed it already. Sasuke stood sentinal in case the fox looked down again and watched as Naruto and his parents started tugging on a tail and the blond started absorbing it. The fox thrashed around and somehow locked eyes with Sasuke and that was the end of the struggle. Suddenly at least half of the beasts chakra had been sealed inside Naruto and the whole place was crashing down. His parents said their goodbyes and gave Sasuke a grateful look before slowly drifting away. Sasuke was abruptly pushed out of Naruto's mind and when he came to Naruto was glowing yellow. And not just radiating a color, he had actually completely turned into a solid yellow glowing being. Sasuke felt his eyes go wide. "Naruto!" The blond grinned at him. He took a deep breath and returned to his normal self. He stood silently and pulled Sasuke up, walked to the door.

"Congratulations, you have made it through the hard part. Tomorrow is when the real training will start." Bee grinned happily at them and Sasuke felt himself smiling too. For the first time in a little while he felt like they had some time. Everything was going to be okay.

. .

It was nice to be able to sleep next to Naruto again. Sasuke snuggled up to him and quickly fell into a much needed, dreamless sleep. He was surprised when he woke up to find Naruto straddling him. The blond was feathering kisses across his face and down his neck. "Um, Naruto?" he asked uncertainly. Was this a dream or was Naruto really doing this to him? It had been so long!

"Yes Sasuke?" Naruto asked unconcernedly as he took his lips' exploration further down Sasuke's bare torso.

"Are you okay?" he asked a little worriedly. Naruto hadn't done this since those first few days before Hinata had gotten to him.

"Wonderful. And you?" He caught the slightly sarcastic tone to the blond's voice and couldn't help but smirk.

"I'll agree that I've died and gone to heaven if you tell me this is neither a dream nor a one time thing," he said smoothly.

"This isn't a dream, and hopefully isn't a one time thing. That's all I can say." Naruto smiled down at him. "I'm feeling really good today Sasuke. _Really_ good. Better than I've felt in a very long time. I think, maybe, I'm healing again." Naruto bit his lip as though he was afraid he had jinxed it.

"Will you explain this feeling?" Sasuke asked excitedly, but still tried to appear offhand.

"I feel energized like I'm not dragging myself out of bed or forcing my feet to hold me up. I feel happy instead of depressed and faking it. I feel a little, well, um, horny, though I usually get that way when I'm around you it's just stronger right now," he said and blushed. He plowed on before Sasuke could so much as blink. "I feel stupidly hopeful. I feel extremely cared for. I feel hungry Sasuke. I want ramen. I haven't been enjoying it lately, but I'm suddenly craving it! I just feel great. There's no other way to put it." The blond smiled down at the raven again.

"You look like you're glowing," Sasuke murmured daring to hope. He wanted ramen. Maybe he really was getting better.

"Rise and shine sleeping beauties. Time for Naruto's training!" came Kakashi's voice through the door.

"Some of us are trying to sleep here!" screamed the less familiar voice of Deidara down the hall. Sasuke could have sworn he heard Itachi chuckle. Sasuke rolled his eyes but got out of bed and started to dress for the day. Naruto followed suit with a new spring to his step. The day went by smoothly with Naruto mastering quite a bit of his training and everyone except for Itachi cheering him on. It was weird to hear Deidara, someone Sasuke had thought to be an enemy for so long, shouting encouragement. He saw the curious look on Kakashi's face throughout most of the day and wasn't surprised when he made his way over to the blond's side when Itachi took a pee break.

"So. You and Itachi. Strange, but you seem to fit well with him." The blond raised an eyebrow, but smiled a little. "I was just wondering why you haven't tried to kill any of us yet."

To Sasuke's surprise the blond blushed. "Well, for one thing I won't go against Itachi and he wants to help his brother. I get that. For another... This place is a peace zone to anyone who knows about it. If you're running from something it's best to come here. Bee will help anyone who genuinely needs it and as long as you're here there is no need to worry about whether the people around you are friends or enemies. He won't allow fighting here, at least not physical. And, well, I wouldn't disrespect him like that after he helped Itachi to open his blind eyes and realize I was pathetically in love with him. To be honest, I'd probably be fighting you guys right now if we were somewhere else and Sasuke didn't need immediate help. But as long as I'm on this island... well let's just say it's a much needed break. No worries, no deceit, no foes. Just peace and a good night's sleep." The blond smiled almost wistfully.

"That's good to know. I wouldn't mind meeting you guys again on this island sometime, as peaceful aquaintances," Sasuke spoke up.

"I look forward to meeting you again as well Sasuke. You're all Itachi talks about." The man grinned.

"What Itachi talks about is supposed to stay behind at the border as well," Itachi said through his teeth. Even Kakashi laughed. He once again slept in Naruto's arms that night and once again woke up to his mouth. This time though it was not on his torso, but rather making it's way determinedly up his thigh. That was definitely a nice wake-up call. During training that day they had a few more unexpected visitors. Sasuke stared interestedly at the five people who stood before him.

"We got worried so we snuck out and followed the trail," Sakura said absentmindedly as she stared incredulously at Itachi and Deidara sitting with Kakashi and holding a conversation.

"What the hell's going on here?" Kiba asked in astonishment.

"Peace zone," Sasuke said with a shrug. "No fighting here." They all just gaped at him.

"Will you please explain what's going on here?" Lee asked calmly. Neji's eyebrow was twitching and Hinata was looking around for Naruto.

Sasuke sighed. "Naruto told me something and I didn't like it, so I asked Itachi to help me change it and he brought me here. A few nights later I kidnapped Naruto and brought him here as well. Then Deidara and Kakashi showed up the other day, Deidara worried about Itachi and Kakashi looking for Naruto and me, and now you guys are here. End of story." He didn't like having to beat around the bush, but he could tell from the look in Hinata's eyes that no one else knew. "And unfortunately, here is where you'll have to stay until the end of all of this. Sorry guys."

For the first time since they'd shown up Neji spoke. "That's fine. I've got nothing better to do." Bee was delighted that Lee was up for learning how to rap and spent the day teaching him how while the others made slightly awkward conversation with the two akatsuki memebers. The next day another couple of people showed up.

"Deidara! Itachi! Thank goodness. We were starting to get worried," the red haired man said.

"Tch. Speak for yourself," the blue haired woman muttered.

Deidara grinned. "Come on Konan. Admit it. You were worried about us."

"I was worried you dumbasses had gone and gotten yourselves killed and was worried that I wouldn't be able to use your guys' shampoo anymore."

The red haired man raised an eyebrow. "That's the best you can come up with? You might as well just admit you were worried if that's your excuse. We all know you only bathe like twice a week or something because you get too caught up in other things."

The woman scoffed and ignored everyone. "Guys, this is Nagato. He and Konan came here after their friend Yahiko died. They're the ones who told me about this place," Itachi explained.

"Hello Nagato. I'm Kakashi Hatake. The pink haired girl and Itachi's younger brother are my students Sakura Haruno and Sasuke Uchiha. These are Neji and Hinata Hyuga, Rock Lee and Kiba Inuzuka. That blond over there with Bee is my other studen Naruto Uzumaki." Sasuke watched as they both looked at the blond with interest but didn't comment. Konan went back to ignoring them and Nagato joined the group on the ground. This really was weird, but nice in a way. And every time he saw Naruto at work his chest filled with hope that when he left this strange but wonderful place Naruto would be coming with him for good. He smiled and shut his eyes as he let his worries float away on the breeze.

**It sucks, I know. I'm tired and it's three o'clock in the morning. I tend to get a little loopy at that time of night. So, sorry but that's as good as it's going to get.**


	12. Chapter 12

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.**

**After rereading my last chapter I've decided that it wasn't **_**that**_** bad and I don't think I'm going to mess with it other than to fix mistakes. Let me know if that bothers you. Otherwise, have a nice read. Rated MA for eighteen and older.**

**Chapter Twelve.**

The time had come for them to leave. Naruto had completed all the necessary training and it was time for him to visit Tsunade again and get all of this squared away. The others were anxious to return to the village as well, but Sasuke was strangely hesitant to leave his brother. He stood there staring at him while everyone else was gathering their stuff. "I'm sorry Sasuke. I have to stay for your sake. Plus I belong with Deidara. I promise you though that we'll meet again." Itachi looked sad. Sasuke saw how guilty and upset Deidara looked. The blond obviously didn't want to be the reason that the two brothers stayed apart. Sasuke was still working on a way to get his brother out, but until he came to some conclusion it wouldn't hurt to let him stay with Deidara.

Sasuke smiled softly at the man Itachi loved before saying firmly, "Once a year. We'll come here for one of our birthdays, yours next year, Deidara's after that and mine the year after and so on. We'll stay for at least a week. I want to see both of you next year and I'll be bringing Naruto. Understood?" Sasuke felt a lump grow in his throat. Even after all the training he'd undergone there was still no guarantee that Naruto would be okay, or that this hadn't just extended his time a little bit. He'd have to wait and see what Tsunade said. With potential heartbreak in his future the prospect of parting from Itachi seemed extremely painful and permanent.

"We'll be here," Deidara said gently. Sasuke blinked quickly to dispel some rather unwanted moisture. He smiled gratefully at the blond. He felt arms come around him from behind.

"And so will we. June ninth, rain or shine, we will definitely be here Sasuke," Naruto whispered loud enough for the other two to hear as well. Sasuke hugged back the best he could in this position and felt happiness flow through him.

"We'll see you soon then. Time will fly, you'll see," he said bravely.

Itachi looked searchingly at him. "I'm not glad that Naruto was in jeopardy, but I am glad that you came to me. It's nice to have you back in my life Sasuke." He looked over his head as he said this, but Sasuke knew it was coming straight from his heart.

"Same," he said quietly. He smiled and with a look that promised they would all meet again he allowed Naruto to lead him away. Lee was saying goodbye to Bee who had grown rather fond of him. Kakashi was making sure everyone had everything as though they were merely going on a field trip or something. Sasuke picked his bag up off the floor and prepared to leave. He was inexplicably peaceful as he looked back and saw Deidara waving from Itachi's arms and Nagato doing the same from next to a pouting Konan. He waved back and then faced forward, towards his future.

"It's sad that we have to leave this place. I do not go with a happy face. On the other hand it will be good to be home. Our friends and our teachers will be glad that we've come!" Lee said loudly.

"SHUT UP!" was the unanimous reply. He'd been driving them all crazy every time he opened his mouth recently. He sighed but somehow managed to refrain. Everyone sighed in relief. The journey home was slow and it seemed that everyone was just happy in general and in no rush to get there. Sasuke was glad for this because he still wasn't sure how Naruto was doing and he didn't want him to push himself. It was almost hard to believe that he hadn't been home in over a month. It was even more shocking to realize that he hadn't missed it. Looking at the blond beside him he decided that it probably had something to do with him. How could he miss a place without Naruto in it? He took Naruto's hand and held it tenderly. He felt his answering smile when the blond turned on him with a large grin. This time they stopped every night to rest for several hours. It was nice to be able to go at such a leisurely pace. Naruto still welcomed him into his embrace every night. It made him feel good. When they showed up at the village the gatekeepers warned them that Tsunade was _not_ happy. Sasuke cringed a little as they walked towards her office. He didn't feel even the slightest hesitation from Naruto however. That boy wasn't scared of anything. He's dying? Fine, there's nothing he can do about it. He's being kidnapped and supposedly taken to the Akatsuki to be killed? Okay, but he would have prefered to be told about it. Tsunade was going to murder him even though there was a chance he was no longer dying? Whatever, bring it on. The boy was unfazed by all of it. He would have thought he had blocked all of his feelings out long ago were it not for the images that continuously popped into his head reminding him that Naruto had most definitely cried. He'd hurt at the idea of losing him, of hurting him. That was enough proof for Sasuke that he really just wasn't scared as opposed to numb. They finally made their way into the building and up to her office and even Kakashi hung back a little. Naruto led the way in. He was definitely crazy.

"Oh, look who decided to show up!" Tsunade bellowed. "Forget the fact that you're DYING! Forget the fact that by all rights you shouldn't even be standing here right now! You just decide to go on some unauthorized rescue mission whenever the mood strikes you! You had better have a good explanation because otherwise I'll kill you myself!" Sasuke felt the anger radiate off of Naruto and quickly gripped his shoulder to keep him from doing anything.

"Dying?" Sakura asked in whisper. Tsunade's eyes snapped to the group behind them and widened as her jaw dropped.

"Why don't you guys go wait in the lounge while Tsunade and I get some things figured out?" Naruto said unemotionally, but again Sasuke could feel the anger washing off of him in waves. He wasn't going to follow the order until Naruto gave him a look that clearly allowed no room for argument. With a sigh he left the room. As soon as the door closed he heard Naruto and Tsunade start yelling at each other at the top of their lungs. He winced and made his way to the lounge.

"He's dying?" Sakura asked again, her pupils dilated in shock.

Kakashi sighed. "That's the reason we were there with Bee. He was our last chance. Naruto has been slowly getting worse for the last year or so. We've been monitoring it and we've tried everything. Even Gaara, the Kazekage, has been searching high and low for a solution. None of us were ready to let him go. He finally accepted that there was nothing he could do about two months ago and his health began to spiral downward at an alarming rate. It seemed that when his mind quit resisting his body followed suit. Before Sasuke went missing we estimated that he had about a month left. When Naruto went missing as well he had about three weeks. By our calculations he shouldn't be here right now, but somehow he is. Perhaps we finally found some way to save him."

"I can't believe he was that bad and didn't tell us," Kiba muttered.

"He didn't want us to treat him differently," Sasuke said quietly. "He told Hinata because they were close and even though she tried she still treated him like he was sick, worried about him when she normally wouldn't have. He didn't want his last months to be like that. He just wanted us to be his friends and treat him the way we normally would. He had letters written up for each one of us..." Kakashi nodded to back him up. Suddenly there was complete silence throughout the building and everyone sat on the edges of their seats. It was twenty-seven painstaking minutes later when Naruto walked out with an empty expression on his face, Tsunade following him with a stunned expression on hers. Naruto approached Sasuke who realized he was holding his breath. He let it out forcefully as Naruto stood mere inches away from him while the raven searched the azure eyes hopefully. Suddenly Naruto's lips crashed down on his and Sasuke felt light-headed.

When Naruto finally pulled away he was smiling. Sasuke felt his heart do flips in his chest. "Tsunade is giving me another year at least and she says if I continue to get better over the next six months she'll give me a clean bill of health. She wants me to come in once a week to get chakra infusions, but otherwise she says I'm free to do everything I would normally do." Sasuke was grinning like an idiot by now. He had at least another year with him! He couldn't believe his luck. He'd definitely done the right thing.

"I think that's cause to celebrate. How about Ichiraku's? On me?" Kakashi said happily. Everyone cheered. They were sitting there eating when Shikamaru came walking in with Ino and Choji in tow. Shino and Ten-Ten showed up shortly after and everyone ordered something. Sasuke listened to Naruto tell Shikamaru the whole story.

"That's great! I admit I was starting to get desperate..." Shikamaru said quietly. The night was wonderful and carefree and Sasuke was happy when Naruto pulled him towards his apartment with their hands intertwined.

"I still have nine days you know," Naruto said easily when they reached his place. "You ran out before you finished your time."

Sasuke grinned. "I guess you're right, it's only fair." He followed him inside before pinning him up against the wall and kissing him silly. When he finally pulled away he looked into those beautiful blue eyes and said quietly, "I want to read my note Naruto." Naruto looked at the ground as he contemplated his next move and Sasuke remained silent. The blond nodded slightly before disengaging himself to go into his room and ruffle through the chest at the foot of his bed. He came back with an envelope in hand and deposited it in his hand before turning and going into the kitchen to give him some privacy. Sasuke opened the note a little apprehensively.

_Sasuke,_

_I know that you're probably in a bit of a shock right now, but I want you to know that I only withheld this information from you in order to make our last days together normal instead of strained. I want you to know that I cherished the time we spent together; you truly were my greatest friend and my life would have been much duller without you in it. I also want you to know that I've been madly in love with you since you stepped in front of me during our fight with Haku on the bridge. That may come as yet another shock to you and I'm sorry I didn't tell you in person, but again I didn't want things to be awkward. Just being with you was enough. I admit I was also a little cowardly; I could never get past my fears in order to tell you, but I wanted you to know because I know how important it is to know that you are loved. I feel like I'm rambling, but that's because there's not much I can say. Our friendship meant more to me than you could ever possibly know and I hope it was good for you as well. Always remember that you were the reason I smiled, the only reason I even got out of bed each day. You kept me going far longer than should have been possible, but sadly all things must come to an end. I'll see you again someday, of that I'm sure, and until then I hope that your life is long, prosperous and full of happiness. Goodbye Sasuke. _

_Love Naruto. _

Sasuke felt the moisture that had gathered at the corner of his eyes and for once he didn't fight it. He walked into the kitchen and pinned the blond boy to the counter. He grabbed his chin, forced him to meet his gaze. "Tell me," he commanded softly.

Naruto gulped and for a minute Sasuke thought that he wouldn't do it, but then he cleared his throat and whispered hoarsely, "I love you Sasuke. I have for years." Sasuke pulled him into a tight embrace and kissed him as though his life depended on it.

"Thank God you've finally admitted it. I was going to strangle you if you kept fighting me." Sasuke smiled at him. Naruto sighed and laid his head on the raven's chest. Sasuke just stood there holding him like that for what seemed like ages. When he finally pulled back it was to kiss him again, but this time it was a very heated kiss. It had been entirely too long since he'd had him. "Make love to me Naruto," he whispered against his lips.

"Always," Naruto whispered back before threading his fingers through the dark locks and leading Sasuke to his room. Sasuke pushed the blond onto the bed and straddled him. He continued to feather kisses on his lips as he slowly undressed him. Naruto's hands fumbled with his clothes as well and soon they were both completely naked. Sasuke grabbed the lube that he'd placed in the bedside table several weeks ago and slicked Naruto's erection with it. Slowly, savoring every inch, he lowered himself onto that glorious piece of flesh. Naruto threw his head back and groaned as Sasuke sank all the way down to the hilt. The pale boy started to move, impaling himself roughly with each thrust. When Naruto hit that spot again he cried out in extacy. He felt the blond's hands on his hips holding him in place as he used each thrust to hit that special place inside of Sasuke. Suddenly the world was spinning and when it righted itself again he was on his back with Naruto pounding into him.

"Harder!" Sasuke cried as he tried to add to the force with which they came together. Sasuke felt himself sliding up the bed with each rough movement of Naruto's hips. The blond wasn't holding back anymore and it was amazing. It wasn't soft, it wasn't sweet, but it was beautiful nonetheless and Sasuke wanted more. He pushed Naruto out of him and turned over, raised himself up onto his hands and knees. When Naruto slid back home he saw stars. The boy pounded into him relentlessly until, with a jolt, Sasuke came all over the bed. He felt that warm liquid filling him once again and he allowed his arms to collapse beneath him. That shoved Naruto further into him and he groaned as he brushed against his prostate. He felt Naruto's hand working on him again and wondered if the blond didn't know that he'd finished. "What...?" Sasuke murmured as he gasped for breath.

"I want to feel you inside me, even if it's only this once." Sasuke's eyes widened at that and his slowly recovering member became fully erect. He moved out from under Naruto and pushed the boy onto his stomach. He used his fingers to prepare him slowly as he kissed up and down his spine. He loved the way he was clutching the sheets, loved the noises coming from his throat. He pulled his fingers out and positioned himself.

"I love you Naruto," he said as he slowly pushed himself as deep as possible into the boy he couldn't seem to get enough of. He moved around inside him until he found that special spot and then angled his hips and pummeled into it. Naruto practically screamed as he shoved back into Sasuke begging for more. Sasuke moved faster, thrust harder, pushed deeper and all the while he kept hitting his prostate. With an animalistic growl Naruto slammed himself against Sasuke and started cumming. The tightening around Sasuke's arousal was his undoing and he thrust once more weakly and spilled his seed into the boy he loved. Sasuke picked the blond up and carried him to the shower. He was never going to forget this night and hoped Naruto wouldn't either. He saw the sleepy smile on Naruto's face and felt his heart do somersaults. "I love you Naruto," he repeated tenderly as he smiled back and kissed him sweetly.

"I love you too Sasuke." Sasuke held on tight determined to never let go. Who would have thought that Naruto would ever mean this much to him? He thanked fate for pushing them together when it had and set about washing his blond.

**No, it's not over. I promise. There are still three more chapters. **


	13. Chapter 13

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.**

**Sorry guys, it's a little shorter than usual. Hope it's good anyways. **

**Chapter Thirteen.**

Sasuke opened his eyes groggily and happily cuddled into the warmth that was pressed against his back. He felt Naruto's lips on his neck in a tender caress and he all but purred. He turned onto his back and pulled the blond on top of him. The smile he got in return made his heart leap into his throat. He kissed the boy softly and smiled back at him. "Good morning Sunshine," Naruto murmured. Sasuke was starting to get used to hearing that.

"Good morning Gorgeous," he murmured back and Naruto blushed. He thought Naruto wasn't shy? "You owe me a date," he said quietly. Naruto raised an inquisitive eyebrow at him. "I asked you out and you turned me down because you didn't want me to fall for you. Well not only have I already done that, but you're healthy now and there's no reason for us not to be together, so you owe me a date. Tonight. At seven thirty."

Naruto smiled a bit ruefully and said, "Deal." A very steamy make out session followed. "I don't feel like training today. I just want to stop and smell the roses if you know what I mean. Will you stay in with me and maybe watch a movie or something?" He looked hopeful and yet wary. Sasuke really wondered if he thought he'd rather train than spend time with him. He certainly hoped not.

"I'd love to." They spent the day watching romance movies/chick flicks and Sasuke held Naruto through the whole thing. Around five o'clock Naruto suddenly stiffened due to a scene in the movie they were watching at that moment.

"Oh God Sasuke, I kissed you in front of everyone! I tried to make sure that no one knew that anything was going on between us for your sake, but that kind of ruined that plan. I'm so sorry. What are we going to do? Maybe we can just say that it was my reaction to the good news and you just didn't want to ruin my moment in front of everyone..." He trailed off as Sasuke placed a finger over his lips. When he had his full attention he pulled his finger away and kissed him lovingly.

"I don't care who knows because I plan to make it public knowledge as soon as possible. I'm not worried about any of that. I _want_ people to know that you're mine." Naruto's eyes were wide.

"But what happens when you leave me? Everyone will think you're gay and you might have trouble finding a girlfriend." He looked torn about the whole situation. Sasuke felt gut punched. Did he really think he was going to dump him after he went to all that trouble just to keep him? Did he really think that his love confession meant nothing?

"What did you just say?" he asked sharply.

Naruto looked confused. "Did I say something to make you angry? You're glaring," he murmured looking down self-consciously.

"Damn right you did," Sasuke said sternly. "Do you honestly think that _I_ am going to leave _you_? After I just spent a month trying to save you? After I told you I love you?"

"But this won't last Sasuke. You were shaken up because you were in unmarked territory and I was familiar. That's what started this. And yeah, you grew a little attached and freaked out when you found out that you were losing me, but now that you know that I'm going to stick around this will all end in eight days," he said with a shrug as though it was common knowledge.

"If I want this to end in eight days then why am I taking you on a date? Why are you letting me?" he asked angrily.

"Because you're still trying to make me happy. And I still want to pretend." Naruto looked like Sasuke's anger was confusing him, but the raven was pretty much fuming at this point.

"You're an idiot!" he said through his teeth. "What do you think last night was? What do you think our first time was? Do you think that was just me _pretending_? Because if you do then you really must not think highly of me. I don't just do that with anyone Naruto. I _love_ you. What part of that is so hard to understand?" he growled.

"All of it," Naruto whispered, eyes wide and face pale. He genuinely looked surprised and suddenly some of his words from last night came floating back to him. _Even if it's only this once..._ He'd really thought that he only had nine days left and he wanted to feel that particular experience before they were up. Sasuke wanted to hit something, though admittedly it wasn't Naruto.

"Well let's see if you can understand this. I'm taking you on a date every night for the rest of this bet. We _will not_ make love until that time is up and you agree that I genuinely want you. And when I'm still around next year then you can tell me that you were wrong and we'll forget about this stupidity. Until then I don't want to hear you utter this asinine thought again. Understood?" Naruto looked like he was about to cry. He nodded jerkily and got up off of Sasuke.

"I'm going to go get ready," he whispered, but Sasuke knew that this time his shower was for comfort more than anything else. He hated that Naruto was upset because he thought he was never going to make love to him again, but he had to prove that this was about more than just sex. He was still going to hold him through the night, still going to kiss him - especially in public - and he was still going to tell him he loved him. And in eight days if he still didn't believe him then he'd find a way to make him play poker with him again and he'd make a new deal. If a stupid bet was what it took to keep him by his side he'd renew the damn thing every month for the rest of their lives. But he would not be intimate with him if he was going to insist that Sasuke just saw him as a fling. Sighing, Sasuke got up and followed Naruto into the bathroom. The door was locked, but it was easy enough to force open. He stripped slowly, aware as hell that Naruto was glaring daggers at him through the shower door. He pointedly opened the door wide and took his time stepping in. As soon as the door was closed he pulled the hurt blond into his arms. The strength seemed to seep out of him as he grew heavier in his arms until Sasuke was the only thing keeping him up. The raven gently wiped a tear away.

"I'm sorry I upset you, but I want you to know that I'm serious about this. I don't say 'I love you' easily; when I do say it, I mean it one hundred percent of the way. If holding back is what it takes to get that through to you then that's what I'm going to do. But I promise you this. Even if we don't make love again before the bet is over that in no way means that I will never make love to you again. As a matter of fact I intend to do just that everyday for the rest of my life starting eight days from now. Do you understand?" Naruto nodded slightly and Sasuke held him closer. "I really am sorry that I made you cry though. Forgive me?" Naruto nodded against his chest again. Sasuke pulled his face up for a slow kiss. "Alright. Let's finish up in here so that we can go get dinner, okay?" Naruto gave him a small smile before going back to what he'd been doing. Sasuke tried not to let the blond's silence bother him as he lathered his hair.

. .

Naruto was sitting silently across from him at the dinner table. They'd gone to a quiet little shop just on the outskirts of town and were currently eating some of the best food Sasuke had ever had. The blond was staring miserably into his bowl. "Naruto, what's wrong?" he asked gently.

"I don't know why I'm so sure you'll leave. It's just, well, everybody leaves. My parents left, the villagers turned their backs on me, even Jiraiya dropped me off and left and I thought he enjoyed my company. I guess I've just loved you for so long without you returning the sentiment that I can't really wrap my mind around the fact that you care. And I hate that I'm upsetting you. I don't want to believe what I do, but I can't seem to push it away..." He sighed heavily and seemed to deflate before Sasuke's eyes.

Sasuke reached across the table and slid his hand over the blond's. "Naruto, your parents loved you. They didn't want to leave you, but they had to in order to protect you. I had hoped you might have come to terms with that when we were battling Kyuubi. Secondly, the villagers are selfish, arrogant pricks who aren't even a tenth of the person you are. And lastly, Jiraiya left you here for your sake. He wanted you to be happy and to stay with your friends. He wanted you to have a sense of security and maybe take your fledgling relationships with the people your own age a little farther. He just wanted what was best for you, but he did care about you Naruto, still does. That's why he still comes around, why he searched so long and hard for a way to save you. Do you understand what I'm telling you?" He waited for the boy to nod before capturing his lips in a slow kiss. When he pulled away he looked deep into those beautiful blue orbs. "And I love you Naruto. I want to be by your side for the rest of my life. I know you've been hurt and that my own blindness has added to your doubts, but I really, truly want you and care about you. And if you can't wrap your mind around it then don't try, just wrap your heart around it and stop worrying so much." Naruto smiled slightly.

"I do love you Sasuke. You know that, right? I'm in no way trying to push you away..." He looked down again.

"I know." He smiled reassuringly at him. Just as he was about to prod Naruto into eating he heard a happy squeal and turned to see Hinata hanging off of Kiba's arm. She refrained from running up to the table and interrupting their date, but only barely. "Hey, Kiba. I'm having another get together at my place this Saturday. Will you spread the word?"

Kiba grinned and Hinata looked excited. "Sure thing. See you Saturday." They took a table on the other side of the shop to give the new couple some space. Sasuke turned back to find Naruto watching him curiously.

"I thought you don't like parties," he said skeptically.

"I don't particularly like them, no, but you do. Besides, I have something I need to do there. It will be the perfect opportunity." Sasuke grinned mischievously. Naruto looked interested but he didn't ask. "Come on. Let's go home." Sasuke took some cash out of his pocket and set it on the table leaving a rather generous tip. He pulled Naruto with him and waved vaguely to the other couple as he reached the doors. They walked slowly back to Naruto's place, hand in hand. It was quiet, but for the first time tonight it wasn't a tense silence. Naruto was staring up at the moon. "What are you thinking about?" Sasuke asked quietly.

Naruto looked at him and smiled a genuine smile. "I was just thinking that you were probably right and I should stop worrying so much. I think I'm going to take your advice and just quit thinking about it."

"I'm glad," Sasuke said happily as he brought Naruto's hand to his lips in a kiss. They continued walking and it wasn't long before Sasuke was shedding his shoes and walking into the cozy apartment. It was funny how this place had come to mean so much to him lately. He went into the bathroom and felt Naruto following him. He wanted to wash his face before he went to bed. As he stood up and wiped his face dry he glanced at Naruto who was leaning against the counter.

"Kiss me Sasuke," Naruto breathed. They were the same words he'd said so many nights ago in exactly the same spot he'd said them. Unlike last time though Sasuke was fully comfortable with pressing Naruto into the counter and kissing him senseless. When they surfaced for air the blond blushed and looked at the ground. "Look, I know you said that you wouldn't touch me until this bet is over, but can you at least hold me tonight? I have trouble sleeping when you aren't there..." he muttered uncomfortably.

"I had already planned on it," Sasuke informed him before swooping in for another kiss. Tonight hadn't turned out to be a total bust after all. He smiled as he led Naruto to his bed and stripped them both down to their boxers before crawling into bed behind the emotionally exhausted teen and pulling him close. He smiled against the tan boy's neck and felt the blond scoot closer. He closed his eyes and went to sleep.


	14. Chapter 14

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.**

**Sorry it took so long guys. I've been in the ER and stuff. Anyways, hope you enjoy. Only one more to go. :/**

**Chapter Fourteen.**

The party was just as interesting as last time, though they had agreed to ditch the alcohol when Kakashi and Iruka showed up. It had been a little awkward at first, but then they'd done everything in their power to make Kakashi take of his mask. Nothing had worked. So they'd decided to play Uno, a harmless but rather entertaining game, and it had somehow turned into a drinking game. It was Kakashi's idea... And apparently that's all it took to get him to take the damn mask off because he ended up doing so after the twentieth round in order to thoroughly kiss Iruka. Everyone had gaped at how handsome he was. Iruka had been extremely flustered. After a little while everyone had branched off into their own little groups. Hinata and Kiba were cuddling in a corner. Sakura, Ino, Neji, Choji and Ten-Ten were off in another corner playing Truth or Dare. Kakashi was holding Iruka hostage in yet another corner of the room and the other male didn't seem all the perturbed. Surprisingly, Lee sat in the middle of the room with Shikamaru playing shogi. It was funny because Lee was once again the only sober person in the room, again by general consensus, and Shikamaru was the one struggling with the game. Sasuke nodded to himself, happy that everyone was occupied for a little while, then ushered Naruto into the last corner where he'd already set up a game of poker.

Naruto raised his eyebrow. "I thought I already beat you at this?" he said with a smirk.

"Yeah, well, I'm sure it was just dumb luck. We're playing for favors again. Name yours," Sasuke said as he sat down.

Naruto seemed to think about it for a little while. "If I win you have to eat ramen for dinner with me every night for a month." He grinned.

Sasuke almost groaned aloud at that. He didn't want to lose for a different reason, but that definitely strengthened his desire to win. "Fine. And if I win you have to move in with me." He watched closely as Naruto took in what he'd said. He saw the slight twitch of surprise, the confusion that quickly changed to longing in his eyes, and he picked up on the hope and excitement humming through his entire being as the idea really sunk in. They silently picked up their cards. Sasuke almost sighed in relief. He had a royal flush. He saw the uncertain and almost crushed look on Naruto's face and figured he'd gotten a high hand. The worst that could happen is that they'd tied and had to play another hand, but he wasn't giving up yet.

Naruto slowly laid his cards down and said in a hoarse voice, "Straight flush, queen high..."

Sasuke smiled happily at him as he laid his down. "Royal flush. Do you need help packing?" Naruto's eyes widened and a stunned smile spread across his face. He leaped at Sasuke and the raven went tumbling backwards. When they'd finally stopped moving he was on his back staring up at a very happy, slightly teary Naruto.

"I love you," Naruto whispered as he slowly leaned down to kiss him. They stayed that way for quite some time before they were told to get a room by Sakura and Ino who were fanning themselves. Sasuke merely told them to lock up on their way out and pulled Naruto out the front door. He wasn't in a hurry to be anywhere in particular, so he simply walked them in circles. Somehow they ended up on the training field. The stars were bright and beautiful, the moon one of those rare ones that was full and big and orange. The fireflies were out and wind was blowing gently. Sasuke spun Naruto into his arms and started swaying gently. "What are you doing?" Naruto asked in an amused voice.

"Dancing. Can't you tell?" he responded a little sarcastically.

"Well yeah, but there's no music," the blond said with a snicker.

"I hear music. Would you like me to hum it?" He didn't wait for an answer and instead started humming his favorite song. Naruto stopped talking and relaxed into him as he listened intently to the soft sound. It may have been a song that Sasuke would never have admitted to listening to even just a month ago, but it had always been his favorite and being with Naruto had given him confidence. It was Kiss Me by Sixpence None The Richer. He thought it was funny that the fireflies were out when he finally decided to sing it openly.

"That's beautiful," Naruto whispered. "Would you sing it?" he asked almost breathlessly. Was he holding his breath because he thought it might make the raven angry? Sasuke shook that thought off.

"Kiss me down by the broken tree house. Swing me upon its hanging tire. Bring, bring, bring your flowered hat. We'll take the trail marked on your father's map. Oh, kiss me beneath the milky twilight. Lead me out on the moonlit floor. Lift your open hand, strike up the band and make the fireflies dance. Silver moon's sparkling. So kiss me."

"I like that song," Naruto murmured. He sighed against Sasuke's neck and the raven suddenly wanted to cuddle with him. He dragged him down onto the soft grass and pulled him into his arms, ignoring his questioning look.

"So do I." He looked deep into those sapphire eyes and felt that rush he felt every time he thought about the words he was going to say. "I love you Naruto."

"I love you too Sasuke." They laid there for what seemed an eternity before they slowly made their way back to Naruto's place. They fell asleep in each others arms.

. .

"You really don't have all that much to pack, do you?" Sasuke asked as he stacked the next to last box, the third box, against the wall. "Your furniture is going to be the hardest to move."

"Yeah. We don't really need to bring it you know. It's not important to me or anything," Naruto said with a shrug.

"Well we are definitely bringing your TV. I enjoy watching movies with you." Sasuke grinned at him.

Naruto blushed at the double entendre. Sasuke had found out that movies usually led to something much more entertaining. "Yeah. Sure. We can bring it..."

"We already packed your movies. That was the first two boxes worth. Why wouldn't we bring it?" Sasuke asked with an eyebrow raised. Naruto just shrugged. They went back to what they'd been doing, Naruto finishing up the last box and Sasuke moving everything they were taking to the wall by the door. Choji was waiting patiently by the front door to help them out with his expansion jutsu. Everyone was happy to see Naruto getting out of this place, what they considered a dump, and Hinata had personally orchestrated a congratulatory party for tomorrow. She would have made it as soon as they were done moving stuff, but Naruto had been able to convince her to let them have a night of peace before she wreaked havoc. Sasuke had seriously come to fear that woman... He was a little uncomfortable with having a bunch of adults in his house, but Naruto had promised to help him tidy the place up and had agreed not to leave his side while the mob was present. There were going to be so many people... The old man from Ichiraku and his daughter, Tsunade and Shizune, Jiraiya, Kakashi, Iruka, Asuma and Kurenai, Gai... Then there were Shikamaru, Choji, Ino, Lee, Neji, Ten-Ten, Sakura, Kiba, Shino and Hinata... Hell, even Gaara and Temari were making an appearance. Kankuro would have come too, but they were leaving him in charge. That made a grand total of at least five other couples who would want to swap stories... He shuddered.

"You okay?" Naruto asked concernedly.

"Just thinking about tomorrow..." he muttered. Naruto barked a laugh and Sasuke heard Choji snickering from outside the door. "I'll kill both of you," he said calmly. That just made them laugh harder. Apparently Naruto had made him softer and nobody took him seriously anymore. Hinata had actually _hugged_ him yesterday. He shuddered once again at the memory. Kiba hadn't even reacted when he threatened to kill his girlfriend. He sighed. Looked like his days as a hard ass loner were over. He looked at Naruto as he folded the last box shut. Oh well, it was worth it. "Ready?"

"Yep. Take me to your castle Prince Charming," the blond said with a smirk.

"What happened to Sunshine?" Sasuke asked feigning hurt.

Naruto laughed. "That's only in the morning when you first wake up, before you have time to get grumpy." Sasuke scowled.

"Come on guys, it's going to get dark soon. We need to get going. You can finish bickering like an old married couple once we get this stuff moved," Choji said as he stuck his head in the room. Naruto laughed again. Sasuke muttered another (rudely ignored) comment under his breath and heaved a couple of boxes into his arms. They made it to his place just before the sun went down. Sasuke cooked dinner while Naruto unpacked then they spent the rest of the night cleaning. It was roughly midnight when they finally went to bed. Sasuke dreamed of a frightening mob standing in his living room touching him at every opportunity. By the time he woke up he was sweating and shaking. When Naruto finally weezled it out of him he laughed so hard he fell off the bed. Sasuke rolled over and promptly ignored him, forcing himself back to sleep. He didn't dream again and when he woke up he was definitely more relaxed. The first thing he registered was that Naruto was once again leaning over him just watching him sleep.

"Good morning Sunshine," he murmured with a tender smile.

Sasuke reached up and caressed his cheek. Naruto leaned into his hand. "Good morning Gorgeous." He pulled him down for a long, slow kiss and groaned when they were interrupted by the doorbell. It went off over and over again and Naruto was laughing by the time Sasuke stomped out to the living room.

"You better let her in before she breaks down the door!" Kiba yelled just before Sasuke yanked the door open. He watched as Hinata's eyes widened at his state of undress, because he slept in his boxers, and he felt a slight rush of satisfaction. He felt strong arms wrap around him from behind and he leaned into an equally underdressed Naruto who was grinning at their visitors.

"Hey guys, you caught us in the middle of something. Come in and give us just a minute to get dressed," he said happily. Sasuke barely restrained a smirk at Hinata's blush. That is, until she squealed. Oh God... Fangirl... He attempted to run away, but Naruto held him back. Even Kiba was laughing now. And then it happened. AGAIN! The woman was_ HUGGING _him! He could have sworn he'd died and gone to hell, but unfortunately Naruto wouldn't be in hell and that was definitely his breath he felt on the back of his neck as his hypnotizing laugh rang through the air. He resigned himself to a life full of unwanted hugs and forcefully disengaged himself to stalk off to the room. Naruto followed closely and closed the door behind him. Before he knew what was happening Naruto had him pinned to the wall and his tongue was attempting to remove his tonsils. Sasuke slowly melted into the kiss and sighed. As long as he had his blond he'd suffer through the more unpleasant moments that came with him. "We should get dressed now. They probably think we're doing naughty things in here. If we're not careful we'll give Hinata a heart attack," Naruto said gently as he pulled away.

Sasuke sighed again. The idea of that happening wasn't entirely unappealing, but he knew it would hurt Naruto if it actually happened. This damn party was for him after all. "Fine. Let's get moving then." He pulled away and went to his dresser to get his clothes. He looked over to the closet that had stayed empty up until last night and watched Naruto pull an outfit off of a hanger. He couldn't help the content smile that made its way onto his face. As long as he had Naruto everything would be fine.

**So it's cheesy... Sue me. I'm in a cheesy mood. I've been watching SasuNaru AMV's all day...**


	15. Chapter 15

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. **

**This is going to be a short chapter. My excuse? It is an epilogue, I'm just wrapping things up. Thanks to everyone who read/followed/favorited/reviewed. Hope you enjoy. **

**Chapter Fifteen - Epilogue.**

Sasuke looked around at his companions and felt happier than he'd felt in a very long time. Watching Deidara and Naruto together was amusing because they got along so well it was almost scary. They laughed quite a lot and it made Itachi nervous. Sasuke had learned to just let Naruto be Naruto, pink feather duster and all. The year that Naruto had been living with him had been full of good moments as well as bad, but every minute had been worth it. He was glad he'd gone to Itachi for help because he knew that his brother had saved Naruto's life. Knowing that Naruto was on the brink of death had made Sasuke cherish every single second they spent together and that hadn't changed when the danger had gone away. Even when they were screaming in each other's faces he was happy. Those moments didn't happen very often though and for that he was grateful. He watched Itachi twitch as Deidara gave a rather surprised burst of laughter and he couldn't help it, he laughed too. Itachi looked at him questioningly, but Sasuke knew he was daring him to say something.

"Relax. They won't get into more trouble than they can handle. Haven't you realized that by now?" Sasuke asked with a grin.

"They may be able to handle it, but Deidara can definitely get into more trouble than _I_ can handle," he grumbled. That just made Sasuke smile wider.

"Then you need to learn to be more flexible," Sasuke teased. Itachi glared. "Happy birthday Itachi," Sasuke said calmly. Itachi's expression slowly cleared.

"I'm glad we could all make it here," Itachi said quietly. Sasuke nodded in agreement. Sasuke was suddenly presented with a pair of lips on his own and looking around the blond that was attempting to distract him he saw that Itachi was in much the same predicament. And then both blonds pulled away. And laughed.

"You were right! They look exactly the same! Those expressions of theirs have to be genetic or something!" Deidara gushed. Naruto was nodding with his arms crossed and his feet spread in a pose that said 'I know everything'. Sasuke laughed yet again. Even Itachi cracked a small smile. Everyone froze in shock.

"Oh my God! He smiled!" Naruto and Deidara yelled in unison. The ravens both shook their heads at the same time. And then Bee came up to them and told them it was time for dinner. They all ate together and spent a little while catching up. This night had been great and they still had six more before they had to head back to their seperate lives. Just before they split off to enter their seperate rooms Itachi pulled Sasuke aside.

"I've made more progress than I though possible. Maybe, if not next year then the year after, we'll be spending our birthday week in Konoha," Itachi murmured.

"I would like that," Sasuke said honestly. He missed his brother a lot now that he knew he wasn't to blame. "I'd like it even more if you came back to stay."

"We will see," Itachi agreed. Sasuke knew it depended on how the Hokage felt about the whole situation. They said goodnight and walked through seperate doors into rooms where their blonds were eagerly waiting.

"So," Naruto whispered into the dark as Sasuke got into bed and pulled him into his arms. He once again felt comforted by the weight Naruto had gained since they'd managed to cure him. "How is it being here with your family again?" Naruto asked gently.

"Amazing. And watching you and D together is entertaining," Sasuke said ruefully.

Naruto grinned. "You and Itachi certainly have similar tastes." He was silent for a moment. "Do you think there will ever come a time when we can see them more than once or twice a year?" Sasuke appreciated that he'd made his voice as soothing as possible because he still felt pangs of loneliness due to Itachi's absence.

"I hope so. Maybe, if everything goes right, soon. We'll just have to see."

"Yes we will." Naruto was once again quiet. Uh-oh. That was dangerous. "So, speaking of family..." Sasuke raised an eyebrow. Where was he going with _that_? "I was thinking we should get married soon... And then maybe we should adopt a kid or something..."

Sasuke felt something warm blossom in his chest at the thought. Instead of letting on though he forced out a groan. "What have I gotten myself into?" Naruto punched him a littler harder than he usually love tapped him and he laughed. "I'd love to. Naruto Uzumaki? Will you marry me? When you're old enough that is."

"Of course I will," Naruto murmured. Sasuke was once again pulled into a kiss. They didn't sleep much that night...

**Can't remember if I put his age in anywhere and I don't feel like searching, but in case I didn't, he was sixteen throughout most of the story. That would make him seventeen in this chapter. Sasuke's older of course. Well, hope you guys liked it. I'll be posting other stories soon if I can get them finished soon. Thanks for reading. **


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